


A Lane to the Land of the Dead

by LulaMadison



Series: Teamwork [5]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (2012), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Aftermath of Torture, Angst, Brief mention of OMC/OMC, Explicit Language, Gen, Gore, Mentions of past mpreg, Self Harm, Suicidal Thoughts, Violence, Wordcount: 30.000-50.000, avenger!loki
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-07
Updated: 2013-04-14
Packaged: 2017-12-07 18:51:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 14
Words: 39,170
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/751843
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LulaMadison/pseuds/LulaMadison
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Loki has been an Avenger for two years, but as a new threat pushes him away from the team, they begin wonder just how much they can trust him.</p><p>5th part of the <a href="http://archiveofourown.org/series/23104">Teamwork series</a>, but this is written like a standalone fic, so if you haven't read the others you will still be able to understand it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I owe a huge "Thank you" to my good friend [Accidental](http://archiveofourown.org/users/accidental/works). Without you I never would have started this fic, let alone finished it :-)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NOTE: If you haven't read the other stories in this series you only need to know a couple of things. Coulson is alive because Loki brought him back from Valhalla, and Loki once taught Tony a bit of magic, but he wasn't terribly good at it.
> 
> Also there is no major character death in this fic, just in case people were worried about that possibility ;-)

  
**Prologue**

_“Darkhawk, this is Houston. Encryption protocols are running at 100% integrity. How are you looking?”_

“I read you loud and clear, Houston, we are looking good. Beginning descent on my mark. Mark.”

_“Angle of descent is looking good on our end, Darkhawk.”_

“Roger. Stand by.”

_“Say again, Darkhawk. We lost you for a second there.”_

“Roger. Copy. Looks good.”

_“We have you loud and clear.”_

“100 feet.”

“60 feet.”

“40 feet. Kicking up some dust, but looking good.”

“20 feet. Drifting a little to the left. Faint shadow.”

“Contact light is on. Engines all stop.”

_“We copy you down, Darkhawk.”_

“Roger, Houston.”

_“Commander Harker?”_

“Yes?”

_“Be careful out there.”_

“I hear you, Houston.”

 

 

Roger Harker had dreamed of this moment since he was a small boy, so when the mission came up he jumped at the chance, even though it sounded like a hoax or April fool’s prank.

He was warned that it was top secret, not even his wife of 12 years was allowed to know where he was going, and an elaborate cover story was drawn up of a posting overseas that was so mundane no one would ever question it.

His hands shook as he pulled his suit on, wracked by conflicting feelings of excitement, curiosity, and pure terror that the _thing_ out there might really be what they thought it was.

He knew it couldn't be, deep down in his heart. It was impossible. It was all a mistake, a misinterpretation of some slightly blurry pixels, and wishful thinking on the part of some scientists.

What if it wasn't? Would they really spend this much money on a mission if there were a single chance that they might be wrong?

As he clicked his helmet into place and checked his suit once more he knew he had to hide how he was feeling. His men, Brooks and Weaver, were looking to him for leadership and he had to set an example for them. He would show no fear.

 

 

“You ready, Brooks?” Harker said, as he moved into the airlock.

“Ready?” Brooks asked, his jaw taut. “Would _anyone_ be ready for this?”

“Just keep your cool, don’t think about it, and we’ll let _them_ worry about what it is when we get home.”

“Let’s just get out there already so we can get off this godforsaken rock as soon as possible.”

Harker smirked. “You know, most would people would give their right arm to be in your place.”

“Yeah, and most of them don’t know what I know.”

“Safety checks?” Harker asked, wanting to make sure that everything on this mission went without a hitch.

“Complete.”

“OK, let’s get moving,” Harker said, as he pulled the large white pod towards the door. “Weaver?”

_“Commander?”_ a voice said, over the comm link.

“De-pressurise the airlock.”

_“Aye, Commander.”_

There was a hissing as the air rushed out, and Harker asked, “We good to go?”

_“All readings normal, Commander. Opening airlock doors now.”_

The doors opened slowly and Harker took his first step on the surface of the moon.

 

 

They had landed the craft some distance away, not wanting to take the chance that the engines would damage the mysterious object that the satellite image had picked up, which left Weaver and Brooks trekking across the desolate lunar surface, walking alongside a motorised pod which would soon hold a precious cargo.

“Are we close?” Harker asked.

_“It is dead ahead of you. You can’t miss it,”_ Weaver replied.

“I see it, I see it!” Brooks said loudly, as they finally reached their destination. “Oh man, it is even creepier than I imagined.”

Harker laughed. “I am so glad the transcripts of this will be top secret.”

Brooks shot him a poisonous look, and then keyed a sequence into the buttons on the side of the white pod, which opened to reveal a chamber inside.

“Let’s get this over with,” Brooks said, as he bent down to look at the humanoid skeleton that lay among the moon rocks.

 

 

The skeleton had been easy to retrieve. They had archaeological tools that would have allowed them to dig it out should it have been trapped inside the moon rocks like a dinosaur fossil, but they had not been needed.

The skeleton simply lay on the surface, which only added to Harker's unease. It was not ancient, but it was not the discarded body of a mystery astronaut from some Earth mission gone wrong, as it showed absolutely no evidence that this person had died while wearing a suit.

A dozen questions ran through Harker's head. Who was this person? How did they die? How long had the body been there, and most importantly, how did they come to be on the surface of the moon?

He hoped that when the answers were discovered he would be kept in the loop on the findings of the scientists, but with a mission of this importance and secrecy, there was a chance he would never find out, and would be left guessing about the origin of the bones for the rest of his life.

The astronauts took their places in the capsule, strapping themselves in securely for take off, and Weaver breathed a sigh of relief. This was it; they were heading home.

“Houston, this is Darkhawk,” Harker said, as he flipped the switches above his head, preparing the engines.

_“We read you, Darkhawk.”_

“Cargo is secured.”

_“Darkhawk,”_ the voice came over the comm, filled with trepidation. _“Is the cargo… what we expected?”_

“Can confirm that cargo is as expected.”

_“Roger that, Darkhawk.”_

“Houston, we have prepped for take off. All engines are in the green and we will begin ascent on my mark. Mark.”

The engines roared into life, shaking the craft gently as they powered up.

_“Looking good, Darkhawk. All readings are within normal ranges.”_

There was a dull thump from the back of the craft and Brooks and Weaver both turned to Harker.

“What’s going on?” Brooks asked, as an alarm started to sound. “We've got red lights.”

“I’ve got a red light on engine three,” Weaver said, frantically tapping at his keyboard. “Houston, I’ve got a red light on engine three.”

_“Roger that, Darkhawk.”_

“Whoa,” Weaver said as the spaceship started to shake violently. “Mechanical failure in engine three, shutting down now.”

“Houston,” Harker said. “We are shutting down engine three due to massive mechanical failure.”

_“Roger that, Darkhawk.”_

“Can we break out of the gravitational pull with only two engines?” Brooks asked.

“We’re gonna have to because I am not staying here,” Harker replied.

The craft lifted off from the surface, they left the moon in their wake and headed back towards home. They busied themselves double checking fuel calculations and angles of descent, as they prepared for re-entry, trying to keep their minds occupied.

As Earth grew larger in the view screen, Harker started to feel better and less like this mission had been a mistake. They could do this. He was going home.

_“We have you, Darkhawk. Everything is five by five.”_

“Copy that, Houston,” Harker said.

A strange sound came from the back of the ship, a repeated banging, followed by a muted wail.

“What the hell was that?” Brooks asked, his eyes growing wide in panic.

“Another fault?” Weaver asked.

“It didn't sound like a fault to me,” Brooks replied.

“Nothing on my instruments. Get back there and check that out.”

“Aye, Commander,” Brooks said, as he stood up and moved towards the cargo hold.

“Houston, we may have to abort re-entry,” Harker said over the comm. “I hate to sound all cliché, but I think we have a problem.”

 

 

Brooks checked the instrument panel on the wall, noting that the cargo hold was still fully pressurised, and tapped a code into the screen to open the hatch.

Nervously he entered the hold, but everything appeared to be normal and where they had left it. The space suits were still in their racks, all the containers of equipment were still strapped in position, and then he moved over to the white pod and peered at it.

The glass was misty and he wiped his hand over it to clear the condensation from the surface, but was surprised when nothing happened. The fogging was on the inside.

He raised his hand, touched his ear and said, “Commander, we definitely have a problem.”

_“What is it?”_ Harker asked, over the comm.

He ran his hand along the black edging of the pod, feeling the hiss of air moving against his fingers. “The seal on the pod is broken. Might have happened in the turbulence when we shut the engine down. The plexiglass is all misted up on the inside.”

Brooks moved his hand against the glass again, wiping it, and then moved his face closer, using one hand to shield his eyes from the glare of the lights.

Something moved inside the pod.

The glass shattered, driving shards into Brooks' skin, and as he tried to scream a hand grabbed him by the neck, gripping him tightly with skinless, blood damp fingers.

The glass in the top of the pod fell away, and Brooks looked into the lidless eyes of the body that lay inside.

 

 

“Brooks, get your ass back up here. We’re about to start re-entry and we need you,” Harker shouted over the comm.

Static filled the cabin of the ship, then a gurgling sound came over the comm, and a voice choked out, _“It’s ali-”_

“Say again, Brooks. Say again. You’re breaking up,” Harker shouted desperately.

The static cleared, and a voice shrieked, _“It’s alive!”_

“Brooks!” Harker shouted. “Get back up here now! Brooks!”

The hatch of the cockpit slammed open and the two astronauts screamed as a half formed body lurched in towards them, leaving bloody footprints behind it.

 

_“Darkhawk, this is Huston, do you copy? We can't see you on tracking, Darkhawk. Repeat, do you copy? Sir, I think we lost them.”_

 

  **Chapter one**

“What’s up, twinkle toes?” Tony asked as he walked into the main room of Stark Tower carrying his laptop, and found Loki sit on the sofa glaring out of the window at nothing in particular.

“Do not call me that,” Loki snapped, his head whipping round, and his scowl deepening.

“Come on,” Tony asked as he sidled across the room. “Who’s upset you?”

“The tall blond who my father always favoured over me,” Loki sighed. “Thor subjected me a thorough telling off not half an hour ago.”

“I have a similar problem myself,” Tony said, and Loki looked at him inquisitively. “Steve gave me a good long lecture. Said what happened was my fault.”

“Steve is very perceptive. I blame this on you as well.”

“Hey, Hey! It wasn't my fault,” Tony said, as he sat down on the sofa. “I wasn't the one who suggested a night out, that was you.”

“No, but you were the one who suggested the drinking game.”

“And I wasn't the one who got so drunk he couldn't find the bathroom,” Tony said with a grin, as he opened his laptop and turned the screen so Loki could see the headline on the news site. “Caught with your pants down. Quite literally, as it happens.”

“It was hardly my fault! How was I supposed to know that door led to the alleyway? If the bathroom had been clearly labelled I wouldn't have needed to relieve myself in the street like a common vagrant!”

“I always thought you’d end up behind bars again, but I never thought it would be for pissing on one of New York’s finest,” Tony said with a laugh.

“I didn't even know he was there till he spoke, it was hardly on purpose! I simply turned… while I was unfortunately still in the act,” Loki hissed. “It takes a lot to sneak up on me, the man must walk like a panther.”

Tony sniggered as he clicked on a few links, and said, “Don’t worry, the Internet will be gossiping about something new a few days. I'm already over it. Check this out.” He turned the laptop.

Loki’s eyebrows knitted together as he observed the image of a fleshy blob laid on sand. “What is that? Is it a creature?”

“I was hoping you would know. I figured it had fallen through some mysterious portal from another realm.”

“I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“Shame, because that, my friend, is a Montauk monster, and aside from people who claim they are dead Raccoons no one has ever really proved what they are. You could have had that honour.”

Loki examined the photo closely, then frowned again. “That is disgusting. I will never understand why you mortals have such an interest in vile things.”

Tony went to speak, but JARVIS said, “I am sorry to interrupt, sir, but there has been an incident, and Director Fury is requesting the presence of the Avengers.”

“Tell him to send over the details and we’ll be right there,” Tony said, and then he turned to Loki. “You coming?”

“Dare I even show my face?” Loki asked.

“Sure,” Tony said. “There might be some fires that need putting out.”

“Oh, _very_ amusing,” Loki replied sarcastically.

 

*

 

“Your brother’s in a bad mood, huh?” Clint asked, as the Avengers stood by, watching Loki repeatedly slam his fist into the face of the man who had proclaimed himself the most powerful sorcerer on Earth, but had been floored by a single bolt of Loki’s magic.

Once the man was on the ground Loki jumped on him, pounding him viciously, leaving the Avengers with little do besides provide an audience, and even Bruce hadn't felt the need to let the other guy put in appearance.

“My brother does not take kindly to boasts that are not backed up by actions,” Thor said, as he leant against a smouldering car. “Especially ones that call his own prowess into question.”

“I fail to see the problem,” Tony said. “We let Loki get himself all tuckered out on that guy’s face, then take him home, put him to bed, and have a mischief free night.”

“Get up an fight me!” Loki shouted at the crumpled body in front of him.

The man raised his arms defensively, looked at the Avengers, and said, “Can someone arrest me already?”

“Call yourself a villain? Begging for your enemies to protect you?” Loki growled. “You are a pathetic disgrace!”

“Please, can someone get him off me _eee_ ,” the man wailed.

“OK, that’s enough, I think we’re done here,” Steve said, as Loki stalked in a circle around the sorcerer, barely able to contain his rage.

“I thought our job was to defeat the villains?” Loki barked.

“He looks like he’s been _defeated_ enough already,” Steve said as he pulled the man to his feet. “You can’t go round beating the crap out of someone who already surrendered just because you’re in a bad mood.”

“I am not in a bad mood!” Loki shouted as he took a threatening step towards Steve.

“Loki,” Thor said, with a note of warning in his voice.

Loki paused; his teeth almost bared as he cast a sideways glance towards his brother, then he turned back to the sorcerer and said, “Well, this must be your lucky day.” Loki whipped round, his cape flaring out behind him, and he teleported away in a flash of light.

“Who rattled the stick up his ass?” Clint asked.

“He’s pissed off his mug shots got leaked on the Internet,” Tony replied.

“He never even got charged. Why’s he so upset about it?” Clint said.

“Apparently the lighting made his skin look terrible.”

“Oh,” Clint said. “Do we need to take the photographer into protective custody?”

“Might be a good idea to suggest it to SHIELD.”

“When you two have _quite_ finished your gossiping,” Natasha interrupted. “Get the jet fired up, we’re going home.”

 

*

 

Back at the tower, after they handed the prisoner off to Coulson, Steve decided to go for an evening bike ride and took Clint with him, clinging on for dear life as they blasted down the street. Natasha took a long bath, then disappeared off into the night, leaving Bruce and Tony to baby-sit a dejected Thor.

“I wouldn't worry about Loki,” Bruce said, noting the tenseness in Thor’s shoulders. “I'm sure he’ll come back when he’s had time to cool off.”

“His moods lately have been… strange,” Thor sighed, as he ran his finger across the condensation that had beaded on the surface of his cold beer bottle.

“Strange?” Tony asked. “I can’t see much of a difference myself. I’ve never known if a joke will make him laugh or get me a smack in the mouth.”

“He seems… unsettled.”

“Maybe he needs a holiday,” Bruce said. “A break would do all of us good.”

“I could take him Las Vegas for the weekend,” Tony suggested.

“I meant a holiday, Tony. Not 48 hours of poker and strip clubs,” Bruce chided. “You could take him somewhere quiet, relaxing, where he can just chill out on the beach.”

“Sounds boring.”

“Does everything that doesn't involved high powered explosives sounds boring to you?” Bruce asked.

“Pretty much.”

Thor drained the last of his beer and stood up. “If you will excuse me, my friends. It has been a busy day, and I am tired.”

“Night,” Bruce said.

“See you in the morning,” Tony said.

“Good night, my friends.”

 

Thor padded down on the corridor on weary legs, and found himself wandering not towards his own rooms, but towards his brother’s instead.

As he reached the door he hesitated for a second, almost feeling nervous, and then tapped on the door gently. He was disappointed when all remained quiet, but he worried that perhaps Loki had returned and was brooding alone, and pushed the door open.

“Loki,” Thor said, when he saw his brother standing in the dark, illuminated only by the lights of the city outside the window.

Loki contained to gaze out across the skyline. “If I’d wanted your company I would have asked you to enter.”

“I am glad you have returned,” Thor said, as he slipped inside the room.

“And where else have I to go?” Loki asked, finally turning.

“You know you are welcome here,” Thor said. “Bruce suggested that perhaps you should take a break. We have been very busy lately. Now that the Bifrost is repaired perhaps we should go home for a while?”

Loki laughed softly. “Asgard. Oh, _yes_. That’s exactly what I need, a journey to _glorious_ Asgard!”

“Brother, what is bothering you?”

Loki sighed, and clasped his hands together. “I'm just tired. I don’t seem to be able to do anything right, and the people judge me. I had hoped that Midgard would be different to Asgard, but it many ways it is not.”

“In what way?”

“You lived in a very different Asgard to me, Thor, you really wouldn't understand.”

“Explain it to me, brother,” Thor said, as he took hold of Loki’s shoulders. “You know it does you no good to hold these things inside. Make me understand.”

“The people loved you,” Loki snapped, as he pulled away from Thor’s hands. “It must have been far easier growing up in a place where your natural talents are prized over all others, than one where magic is dismissed as mere trickery.”

Thor frowned. It had been a long time since Loki had spoken this way, and he had come so far in the time he had been on Midgard.

Bruce had explained it to him once, that sometimes it was easy for a person to fall back into old habits and old ways of thinking, even when they were feeling better. They had spoken at length many times, and Thor had allowed Loki to say how he felt without interruption, without contradicting him, and Loki had allowed him to speak in return.

They had listened to each other, for the first time they had _heard_ each other, and understood the hurts they had both suffered. It had brought them closer together, and while Loki was still prone to tantrums and outbursts over strange things, Thor loved his brother more than he ever had.

“We have spent hours discussing this,” Thor said, as he placed his hands on Loki’s shoulders. “You know it was not always easy for me either, growing up with all that expectation, knowing that one day I would likely be called upon to be king, and that I alone would be responsible for the safety of the realms.”

“I know,” Loki sighed. “I know that it was not easy for you either, and yet sometimes I cannot stop myself thinking these things. Perhaps you cannot paper over the cracks of a damaged mind with kind words and good deeds.”

“You perform mighty acts of heroism that will be talked about by the people of Asgard for years to come. Everyone loves you.”

“I do not feel it,” Loki said dejectedly, pulling away.

Thor reached for Loki again, this time pulling him into a tight embrace. “We have lived for over a thousand Midgardian years, and we have been here for only two. You cannot expect to heal so quickly.”

“I know,” Loki said, burying his nose into his brother’s neck. “I will apologise to everyone tomorrow. I should not have allowed myself to become so angry.”

“I am glad you came back, brother,” Thor mumbled. “I pray you never leave me again.”

“I have no plans to go anywhere,” Loki replied, as he gratefully accepted the hug for a little longer.

 


	2. Chapter 2

True to his word, Loki apologised to the team the next day for letting his anger get the better of him, and then took Steve to one side and swore he would not mistreat a prisoner again.

A few days later, when Tony asked him if he wanted to hit a bar, he graciously declined the invitation claiming that he needed to stay out of trouble for at least a few weeks, and instead Loki spent his evenings quietly reading, or watching films of Thor's choosing, which seemed to please his brother immensely.

 

 

It was closer to lunchtime than breakfast, as Loki idly poked at a bowl of cereal, ignoring the annoying sound of the game Tony was playing on his phone as he drank cup after cup of coffee.

Absolutely _everything_ irritated him lately, and he had no idea why. He had a strange sense of foreboding, as if something terrible was about to happen, and a few seconds later it did.

“Sir, Director Fury is in the lobby,” JARVIS said.

“What does he want?” Tony asked, looking up from his phone.

“He didn't state a purpose for the visit,” JARVIS replied, “but he did say he wished to speak with Loki, sir.”

“What have I done?” Loki asked, shrilly. “I've barely left the tower for the last two weeks.”

“He will be along to answer your questions presently, sir.”

Loki sighed and pushed his bowl of cereal away.

“Don’t let it worry you,” Tony said. “He could be bringing good news.”

“When does Fury _ever_ bring good news?” Loki asked.

Tony opened his mouth to speak, then hummed. “You've got a point there.”

Fury marched into the room and Loki shrank down into his seat when he saw the look on his face.

“I haven’t done anything,” Loki piped up.

“How unusual,” Fury replied dryly.

“Coffee?” Tony asked.

“I’ll pass,” Fury said, waving his hand and sitting down. “I need to ask you a serious question.”

“All right,” Loki said, suspiciously.

“Do you recognise this boy?” Fury asked, as he held up his phone, displaying a picture.

Loki furrowed his brow, taking in the short, dark hair that was longer at the front and fell across the boy’s face in straggly tendrils. He looked thin and hungry, and couldn't have been more than 18 Midgardian years old. He looked familiar somehow, like someone he had seen in a long forgotten dream.

“I don’t believe I've ever seen him before no, but… I don’t know… there is something about him,” Loki said.

“Who is he?” Tony asked.

“The kid got picked up wandering round Central Park in nothing but a blanket a few days ago.”

“I don’t understand,” Loki said, shaking his head. “What has this got to do with me?”

“He claims he’s your son.”

Loki sat back in his chair. “I think I would remember if he were one of my children.”

“No, no, this story gets better,” Fury said, with a incredulous laugh. “He claims he’s your son from the _future_.”

Loki’s mouth fell open in disbelief. “What?”

“Yup, your son, from the future,” Fury repeated.

“How utterly ridiculous!” Loki exclaimed. “The child is plainly insane.”

“That’s what we thought too, but the kid passed a lie detector test with flying colours.”

“That proves nothing. I’m sure I could tell you that I am your father and pass.”

“Again, that’s what we thought, so we performed a DNA test.”

“What did it show?” Tony asked.

“It showed that he is half human,” Fury said, knitting his fingers together as he turned to Loki. “And that you were a perfect match for the other half.”

 

*

 

Loki nervously pulled at the hem of the hooded sweatshirt he had taken from Thor’s wardrobe at Fury’s insistence, as they crossed the car park and headed towards the entrance of the hospital.

“Will you stop fidgeting,” Tony complained. “You’re making me nervous, and I don’t _do_ nervous.”

“I'm not fidgeting,” Loki snapped as he pulled at the cuff and let out a small growl of frustration. “These clothes are just so irritating. How can you stand being so confined in unnatural cloths?”

“Confined? Mr ‘wouldn't look out of place in an S & M club’ is complaining about confining clothes?”

“My clothes are made of leather which is natural. It is hardly the same.”

“Will you two stop bickering like teenage girls and get in the damn hospital,” Fury barked. “You’re giving me a headache.”

Loki scowled at Tony, who flashed him his most annoying grin in return.

“So what do you know about my so called son?” Loki asked. “I will wager that your tests are incorrect and the child is simply insane.”

“He said his name is William Lokasson and that he is 600 years old.”

“The tests are definitely wrong then,” Loki stated as they reached the entrance.

“And what makes you say that?”

“I hardly think I would give any child of mine a name as dowdy as William.”

Fury turned and glared at Loki, his hand still on the door handle. “Given that the name William actually means ‘helmet’, I rather think that you might.”

“Oh,” Loki said. “I see your point.”

 

*

 

“Oh my god, that is _totally_ your kid!” Tony exclaimed, as they finally saw William through the glass panel in the door. “The hair, the slightly weasely face, the expression like he can smell something _really_ bad.”

“My hair looks absolutely nothing like his!” Loki replied. “Wait… weasely? What do you mean by that?”

“Come on, you can’t see that he looks kinda like you?”

“Maybe slightly,” Loki admitted grudgingly, “but he has brown eyes. My eyes are green.”

“Your eyes are _not_ green.”

“Yes they are!”

“When you two have quite finished pulling each others pigtails,” Fury said with a raised eyebrow. “Is there any way you can tell if he really is your son? Just in case the DNA tests are wrong.”

“Oh, yes,” Loki replied. “If he is my son he will posses the ability to do magic. Each person’s magic is unique, but the basic skills are inherited. I will be able to sense if his magic is at all related to mine.”

“Like a genetic fingerprint?” Tony asked.

“More like a smell,” Loki replied.

“Magic has a smell?” Tony asked.

"Not exactly, it's like a smell, a taste and a feeling all together," Loki replied, "but it is the closest description that I can give that your mortal brain will understand."

“What does it smell like?”

“Mine smells… like a mixture of fruit and sugar. Like those toffee apple that Thor insisted on making last Halloween… Before he burnt the toffee and set off the fire alarms.”

“What does my magic smell like?”

“Like something that came out of the back end of a cow.”

“Can we get back to the matter in hand?” Fury asked loudly.

“Sorry,” Loki said quietly, and Tony mumbled something that sounded apologetic, but probably wasn't.

“So you can tell if he’s lying?”

“I believe I can, yes.”

“Well, in you go,” Fury said as he motioned for the SHIELD guards to step out of the way, and pushed open the door.

Loki hesitated, and then stepped into the room alone.

He was going to meet his son, his son who hadn't even been _born_ yet, he felt a strange mix of emotions and questions swirled round his head. What would he be like, how was he born, who was his other parent, was this child really his, and most importantly how should he feel about him?

Was he supposed to love this boy, even though he had never met him before? If he didn't love his child, what did it say about him?

When his other children had been born he had loved them from the second he felt them growing inside him, and it had broken his heart when they had grown too large or fierce to stay in Asgard. This child seemed to have a normal appearance, one that would allow him to pass for Asgardian, and Loki started to wonder if his sudden arrival on Midgard meant he had been cast out too.

“Father!” the boy shouted with a beaming smile. “I'm so happy to see you.”

“Er… Hello,” Loki said, feeling slightly ill at ease.

“I understand this must come as a terrible surprise to you,” William said. “You often told me that you hadn't planned to have more children, but I am so glad to see a familiar face. Midgard at this time is awfully strange.”

Loki took a moment to assess the situation as he crossed the room and sat in the chair by the bed. The boy certainly looked like he could be his child. His eyes were different, his lips fuller, and his face a little wider, but they definitely shared the same nose, cheekbones and jaw line.

“It is rather, yes,” Loki said, narrowing his eyes slightly. “Why don’t you tell me how you came to be here?”

“We were in a mighty battle, an army were preparing to invade Asgard, and we called upon master sorcerers from all over the realms to aid us,” William began. “Our plan was to create a portal using the power of the Bifrost, and send the enemy to a distant place, far among the stars, but they lost control of the portal. It destabilised, splitting into several smaller ones in different locations, and sadly one of them materialised next to me.”

“And where was Odin during this? Surely he would have had the power to control the portal?”

William’s eyes were suddenly downcast. “I'm afraid to say that the all father no longer lives in my time. He died a warriors death, fighting for the safety of Asgard, and Thor rules in his place with you by his side as his most trusted advisor.” The boy sniffed and turned his head away.

“Are you all right?” Loki asked.

“I'm sorry,” he replied, wiping his nose. “I miss grandfather terribly. It still upsets me to think about it.”

“You grew up in Asgard, in the palace?” Loki asked suspiciously, knowing that none of his children in the past had ever been afforded that luxury.

“I was born on Midgard,” William said. “You still had many responsibilities here, but we travelled between the realms frequently.”

Loki considered the story for a second. It seemed plausible enough, and nothing in the boy's demeanour indicated that he was either lying or of unsound mind.

“You understand that this has come as a surprise, and that I must ascertain that you are telling the truth, yes?” Loki asked.

“I would expect nothing less,” William said with a smile. “Would you like me to perform a spell so you can trace the magic?”

“I think that would wise,” Loki replied. “What is your greatest skill?”

“I'm quite accomplished with fire,” William replied.

“Well, shall we see a little of that?” Loki asked.

William smiled widely, held his hand up, and created a small flickering red and gold ball of light.

“Very nicely controlled,” Loki said, impressed at the tight shape of the flames.

“I had an excellent teacher,” William replied, blushing slightly at the compliment.

Loki reached out with his magic, feeling tendrils of it curl around the flames. He could feel something familiar in it, but it was feint and distant. “Can you make it burn a little brighter?”

“Of course, father,” William said. He concentrated on the flames in his hand, causing them to burn brighter and hotter until the ball was growing in size, and Loki suddenly knew exactly who the boy was.

An alarm sounded, water started to rain from the ceiling as the sprinklers turned on, and Fury burst into the room with his gun drawn.

“Stop, stop!” Loki shouted, as he jumped from his seat and stood in front of William.

“What the hell is going on in here?” Fury barked.

“A simple test,” Loki replied, with his hand outstretched, ready to throw up a deflection spell. “You told me to ascertain if he was my son, and to do that he had to perform a spell.”

“You tested it with _fire_?” Fury shrieked.

“Well, yes.”

“Fire? _FIRE?_ ” Fury raged. “You tested it with fire, in a hospital filled with highly combustible gasses?”

“Oh,” Loki replied. “I hadn't really thought about that.”

“Tell me you at least got the answer to our question?”

“I did. I'm rather surprised to say that he is definitely my son.”

“You are 100% positive?”

“Oh yes, there is no mistake.”

“Can someone please get these god damn sprinklers turned _off?_ ” Fury shouted over his shoulder to the SHIELD agents who hovered at the doorway. They looked at him blankly and he growled in frustration, heading towards the door. “Never mind, I’ll do it myself.”

“Well, that was interesting,” Loki said.

“That was Nick Fury,” William said, with a look of awe on his face. “He is exactly how you described him.”

“And how was that?”

“Angry,” William replied. “Very, _very_ angry.”

The sprinklers and alarm shut off and Loki went to speak, but stopped when William broke out into a wide grin. “What is it?”

“OK if I come in?” a voice asked, and Loki looked round to see Tony stood at the door.

“Tony Stark!” William said excitedly. “I have heard so much about you, and it is an honour to finally meet you.”

“An honour, eh?” Tony said, as he walked over to the bed.

“Very much so,” William replied, then his brow creased. “You’re a lot shorter than I expected.”

“Oh, oh, he is _definitely_ my son,” Loki said proudly. “Only a few sentences exchanged and you’re already insulting him.”

“Like father like son,” Tony said.

“Forgive me, i-it was not meant as an insult,” William stammered.

“Don’t worry about it, kid. I've kinda become immune since your dad’s been mooching, rent free, in my house,” Tony said.

“My father speaks very highly of you,” William said. “I was always sad that I never got to meet you, and now here you are.”

“You hear that?” Tony said to Loki. “I'm your favourite.”

“I can only imagine that at some point you have a knock on the head, which transforms your personality, because you are _quite_ the most irritating creature I have ever met,” Loki replied.

Tony frowned at Loki, and then turned back to William. “So… From the future, eh?”

“I am, indeed.”

“If this is daddy, who was the unfortunate little lady, or horse, that he got with?”

“I don’t actually know the identity of my other parent, all I know is that he was a mighty warrior who fell in battle and my father was so distraught at his passing that he ate his heart so his spirit would live on,” William replied, and Loki stared at him with wide eyes.

“ _Annnd_ … yup, that’s pretty much the _most_ disgusting thing I've ever heard,” Tony said, and then he turned to Loki, and asked, “A heart? Really?”

“It would not be the first time,” Loki replied quietly.

“I don’t know how I will get home,” William said, as he nervously wrung his hands together. “We were in the middle of a great battle. My part of the plan was vital and we may face defeat if I am not there. Asgard may fall.”

“Well, you must come back with us to the tower,” Loki suddenly said. “Stark here is a genius and I am sure he will be able to help you create a portal device.”

“Sure, _yeah_ , time travel,” Tony said. “I’ll get right on that _one_ …”

“Do you have any objections about my son coming back with us?” Loki asked, giving Tony a look that clearly indicated what his answer should be.

Tony raised his eyebrows and looked at William who was staring back at him with a hopeful look on his face. “Sure, why not. Seems like I'm giving a home to half of the Asgardian royal family these days. One more won’t hurt.”

 

*

 

Tony called Steve on the way back to the tower and asked him to gather everyone for an important meeting, but they were surprised when Tony and Loki turned up, trailed by a dark haired boy who was dressed in a black hoodie and what appeared to be a set of hospital scrubs.

“Uncle!” William shouted as he shot across the room and wrapped his arms around Thor. “It is wonderful to see you!”

Thor smiled down at the boy and said, “I'm sorry. I think you have mistaken me for someone else.”

“He’s my son, Thor,” Loki said, as William moved back over to his side.

Thor looked up quickly. “You have another son? You have kept him hidden from us?”

“Er… he’s from the future,” Tony said with a shrug of the shoulders.

“TIME TRAVEL?” Clint shouted. “After all the weird and wacky shit we've seen we now have to deal with time travel too?”

“How is that possible?” Bruce asked.

“No clue,” Tony said, as he slumped down on the sofa. “Why don’t you ask those two? Actually, ask him who the mother is because you’ll _love_ that one.”

“Mother?” Natasha asked. “Who was it?”

“Technically, I am,” Loki replied, looking down at his feet.

“Shape shifting?” Bruce asked.

“It’s a little more complicated than that,” he mumbled.

“He ate a heart,” William said proudly.

“BROTHER!” Thor exclaimed. “Again?”

“ _Again?_ ” Clint asked. “You mean we've been living with a-a a cannibal?”

“I'm not a cannibal! If I was a cannibal I would have had to eat the heart of a Jotun,” Loki said, his cheeks turning pink, and then he raised his finger to his pursed lips. “Oh wait… Angrboda _was_ a Jotun.”

“Oh god,” Clint said. “I let you drink out of my water bottle the other day. I feel sick.”

“That happened hundreds of years before you were even born,” Loki said.

“I don’t care. I am burning that bottle.”

William let out a little chuckle, and everyone looked at him.

“Sorry,” he said. “It is just so very wonderful to meet you all. My father and uncle speak of you frequently, of the adventures you had, and of your many arguments. It is wonderful to be here to experience it for myself. It's exactly how I dreamed it would be.”

“So you can do magic?” Steve asked, trying to drag the conversation back, and William nodded. “Can’t you create a portal to get back to your time?”

“I'm afraid my powers are quite limited in comparison to my father as I have not finished my training in the magical arts yet. I did not create the portal that brought me here. I'm afraid that I may never be able to return home,” William said, his voice wavering on the last few words as he brought his hand up to his eyes.

Loki patted him on the back, and said, “Don’t get upset, we will find a way to send you home. Come, you should rest a while, and then we will begin work on finding a way to open a portal.”

“Thank you, father,” William replied, smiling sadly as Loki led him from the room.

Loki paused at the doorway and turned his head. “You will meet me down in your lab in approximately ten minutes to discuss this, Stark, or you will feel the consequences.”

“You better run, Tony,” Natasha said with a smirk, as Loki left the room. “Wouldn't wanna keep your wife waiting.”

“Ha _ha_ ,” Tony replied sarcastically, then he jumped out of his chair and headed quickly down to his lab.

“This place just gets weirder and weirder,” Bruce said.

As the room cleared and everyone went back to their work, only Clint and Natasha remained, both knowing exactly what the other was thinking.

“You trust the kid?” Clint asked.

“Not a chance,” Natasha replied.

“Same here.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note: Just in case anyone was worried, there is no major character death in this fic ;-)

Tony thought it would be strange having a 600-year-old teenager living in the tower. He half expected to come home and find My Chemical Romance songs blasting through the walls, but the only time that happened he burst into the living room to find Loki dancing wildly to their last album while William sat reading a book.

Tony had watched their interactions for a while, and it seemed to him that Loki really didn't have a clue how to handle being suddenly landed with a child he’d never met, and he veered between aloofness and over protectiveness.

William himself appeared to be quite content to trail round after his father, following him everywhere he went, regardless of whether Loki interacted with him or not, but he had to admit he didn't really mind having the kid around.

William was quiet, intelligent and polite. He had impeccable manners, as befitted a prince, unlike Loki who on the surface seemed quite regal, but lately had developed the habit of putting his feet on the coffee table with his boots still on, which annoyed Tony endlessly. He had the sneaking suspicion that was actually _why_ Loki had started doing it, but he never mentioned it again after the first time he told Loki to take his feet off the table, and noticed the mischievous gleam in his eyes.

William’s presence appeared to have some kind of calming effect on Loki’s more trollish tendencies Tony noted, and JARVIS informed him that Loki's tirades were down by 60%, tricks were down by 80%, and he hadn't smashed anything over Thor’s head in at least a week, so as far as he was concerned the kid was earning his keep.

 

 

As he waited for his coffee Tony leant against the counter top and said, “Good morning,” when Loki entered the kitchen and sat wearily at the table.

“Is it?” Loki asked, as he lowered his chin to his hands and closed his eyes.

“Did you raid my bar last night? You look like shit.”

“I wish,” he mumbled, his eyes still closed.

“Where’s your little shadow this morning?” Tony asked, finally pouring out a steaming cup of coffee.

Loki raised his head and scrubbed at his eyes. “What?”

“Future boy. Where is he? I haven’t seen you alone once since he arrived.”

“Still sleeping.”

Tony sat down opposite Loki. “You look like you could do with a few hours more yourself.”

“I made a terrible mistake the first night he was here,” Loki said, letting his head flop forward again. “He couldn't sleep so I let him sleep in my bed, and now it appears that he will not leave it.”

“W _hoa_ … You’re letting an 18 year old kid you barely even know share your bed? Don’t let the press get hold of _that_ one, ‘cause that is just scandal waiting to happen.”

“He’s my son, he’s not some random boy,” Loki replied.

“How are you doing with that now? The whole kid appearing out of nowhere thing?”

Loki sighed, mulling it over in his mind. William was his son, and he was a nice, pleasant, young man, but other than that Loki felt very little at all. He did care about the boy, and wanted him to go home, as he was sure his future self must be frantic with worry at his disappearance, but his lack of paternal feeling towards the child disturbed him.

“It is going as well as can be expected,” Loki said. “Although I find it vaguely alarming that he clings to me like a limpet the entire night. I'm not altogether sure that he hasn't experienced some form of trauma.”

“He said he’d just come from a war zone and he’s not even an adult. Sounds like trauma enough to me.”

“It is customary in Asgard to start young. I was younger than he when I first entered battle.”

“No wonder you’re insane,” Tony muttered.

Loki raised his head. “Pardon?”

“I said ‘I think it’s going to rain.’”

“Hmmm, possibly,” Loki said as he squinted out of the window.

“You want me to set him up with a room?”

“I somehow doubt he would use it.”

“Sure he will," Tony Said. "I’ll get him all the latest tech. Laptop, games console, sound system, and the biggest TV money can buy. We’ll probably never see him again.”

“I suppose it wouldn't hurt.”

Tony tilted his head and said, “JARVIS?”

“Yes, sir?”

“Can you contact Pepper and ask her to go shopping first thing when she gets in. Everything a growing boy would need.”

“I will do it now, sir,” JARVIS replied. “After all, I'm sure the CEO of a company has nothing better to do.”

Tony paused, his mouth open in vague shock at what his AI had said to him. “Tell her to go wild with the credit card and get herself something nice too.”

“I shall indeed.”

“See, all sorted,” Tony said. “Provided Pepper doesn't kill me.”

“I will believe it when I have my bed to myself tonight,” Loki replied.

 

*

 

Clint was pulling on a T-shirt after a shower when he heard a knock at his door. He gave his hair one last rub with a towel and threw it into the washing hamper, before shouting, “Come in.”

Natasha entered, quietly closing the door behind her.

“What’s up?” Clint asked, his brow furrowing. “You look kinda serious for this early in the morning.”

“I just had Fury on the phone,” she replied pensively.

“Orders?”

“Yup.”

Clint raised an eyebrow. “ _Secret_ orders?”

“Yup,” Natasha replied, folding her arms. “We need a plan.”

 

 

“Hey!” Natasha said brightly as she walked into the kitchen, finding William sat next to Loki, who appeared to sleeping face down on the table, and Tony stood by the cooker. “Oo _ohhhh_ , are you making Waffles? Any spare?”

“I'm not Steve. I don’t cook entire breakfast buffets,” Tony snapped. “If you want waffles you can make them yourself after I'm done.”

“Spoilsport,” Natasha said as she swiped a piece of almost cold toast off a plate. She pointed her thumb at Loki, and asked, “What’s up with him?”

“I don’t believe my father slept very well last night,” William replied as he picked at his cereal.

“Well, since he’s passed out, you wanna come spar with me and Clint after breakfast? It’ll be fun.”

“Spar?” William asked. “I would be allowed to spar with the legendary Black Widow?”

“Legendary, huh? I like the sound of that.”

“Very much so,” he replied excitedly. “Oh… but I would have to ask my father’s permission first, and he is… well…”

“I'm not asleep,” Loki mumbled. “You can go.”

“Are you sure?”

“Of course,” Loki said, lifting his head and looking at him blearily. “Stark, make me the strongest coffee you can.”

“You never drink coffee,” Tony replied.

“Yes, but I want to be awake to watch Barton be bested by a child.”

 

 

Thor was surprised when he walked into the kitchen and found it empty, but JARVIS helpfully informed him of the location of the team, and he quickly made his way down to the training rooms, not wanting to miss the fun.

He could hear the whoops and laughs as soon as he reached the end of the corridor and quickened his pace. As he pushed open the door there was a huge blast of heat and flames shot in his direction.

“Sorry, sorry,” William cried as the flames dissipated.

“Thor! You must come and watch this. William has the most remarkable control of fire!” Loki cried. “It is wonderful. Remarkable. Quite incredible!”

“Ignore him, he’s had one cup of coffee and now he won’t shut up,” Tony said. “Someone remind me to put child proof lids on all the jars when we get back upstairs.”

“As if those would keep me out,” Loki said with a snorting laugh.

“I once sat and watched you try to open a bottle of bleach for 15 minutes.”

“I was successful in the end!”

“Yeah, 'cause you cut the top off with a bread knife.”

“Guys?” Clint interrupted. “Who’s next?”

“I’ll go,” Natasha said, moving forward onto the matt. “That OK with you?”

William nodded. “I am ready.”

“Let’s see what you can do.”

They moved around, circling each other, and then Natasha lunged, faking to the left, making William dodge, and then quickly wrapping her arms around his neck, her momentum carrying them over so he was pinned on the floor.

“Teleport! Teleport!” Loki shrieked.

“Give up?” Natasha asked, as William struggled underneath her for a moment.

“No,” William replied, and then he turned his head towards Loki. “And I can’t teleport. I was never very good at it. I had a terrible habit of leaving all my clothes behind.”

"You aren't the only one," Loki laughed, flashing a grin at Tony.

“What you gonna do to get out this one?” Clint asked. “Looks like she’s got you.”

“Ordinarily I would unleash a blast of flames directly into her face, but I don’t want to ruin her lovely hair,” William replied, straining to keep Natasha’s arm from crushing his neck. “I could also take my hand and use my thumb to apply pressure to the eyeball, causing her to become unconscious, but I don’t want to do that. I’ll do this instead.”

William raised his knees quickly, using his height advantage, even though he was flat on the floor, and rolled his body. His knees hit Natasha in her backside knocking her forwards, and he continued to roll over, eventually landing on his knees to the side of her and jumping to his feet quickly.

Loki clapped loudly, and Clint joined in saying, “Nice move.”

“You got lucky,” Natasha laughed.

“Lucky?” Loki as he slapped his hand on William’s back. “What you see here is a prime example of wonderful Asgardian training methods.”

“I don’t remember you being quite this enthusiastic about training when it was your turn, brother,” Thor laughed.

“Shut up, Thor!” Loki shouted, and then turned back to William. “You are an excellent warrior,” then he lowered his voice and continued, “Perhaps one day you can to teach me how to break the Widow’s hold? The woman is like a snake in battle, and just when you think you are free of her, you find her coiled round your other leg.”

“I can hear you, you know?” Natasha said.

“Then perhaps you should not be snooping if you don’t like what I'm saying,” Loki snapped.

“What time is it?” Tony asked.

“Almost lunch time if my stomach is anything to go by,” Clint replied.

“I want noodles, I'm ordering out,” Tony announced. “JARVIS?”

“Yes, sir?”

“Prepare to take an order.”

As everyone started naming dishes, Natasha moved towards the door, and said, “Clint, order my usual. I’ll be right back.”

She walked to the nearest bathroom and started typing a message on her phone.

_“Sparing over.”_

_“Report,”_ Fury replied.

_“Good combat technique. He’s strong, not as strong as Thor or Loki, but definitely slightly above average human levels.”_

_“Magic?”_

_“Competent. Doesn't have the range of skills that Loki has, but very good with fire. Could be useful.”_

_“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,”_ Fury replied.

_“Further orders?”_

_“Continue the assessment.”_

_“Something feels off about this.”_

_“Agreed. Keep a close watch. Contact me again when you have more intel.”_

Natasha put her phone away and headed up to the kitchen.

 

 

 

After lunch Loki decided to take a nap, leaving William in the kitchen, and Tony received a message from Pepper that ‘operation bedroom’ was complete, and that he should also expect a hefty bill from the Apple store as she bought herself something _very_ nice.

“I have a surprise for you,” Tony said.

“A surprise?” William asked, looking up. “What kind of surprise?”

“No need to looks so nervous, kid. The good kind of surprise,” Tony said, as he headed towards the door. “Well, come on then.”

William followed him out into the corridor and said, “I don’t a require a surprise. Your generous hospitality in allowing me to stay here is more than enough of a gift.”

“Well, if hospitality is your thing then you’re gonna love this,” Tony said as he finally pushed open a door. “Here we are.”

“This is to be my room?” William asked, as he looked round.

Tony nodded. “Yup, and it has everything you could ever need. Laptop, PS3, Wii, Xbox, for all your gaming needs, and a huge TV to play them on.”

“It is a fine room and I thank you most humbly, but I think my father would prefer it if I stayed with him for now.”

“It’s fine, he agreed. You need your own space, and daddy needs his sleep so he can fight the bad guys,” Tony said.

“Sir,” JARVIS intoned. “Director Fury is on the line. There is a situation which requires the attendance of the Avengers.”

“Speaking of which… JARVIS, tell Loki to get his ass back out of bed, and tell everyone else to suit up and meet at the Quinjet hanger in 2 minutes.”

“I will alert them at once, sir.”

“Can I come?” William asked, hopefully. “You saw what I can do today. You know I can fight.”

“Sorry, kid. It’s too soon for that, but maybe one day,” Tony replied, as he headed off down the corridor. “No parties while we’re out!”

William watched as Tony quickly rounded the corner and headed back inside. He picked up a handful of the games, looked at the covers, and then hurled them across the room in frustration.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 4 will be up in a few minutes!


	4. Chapter 4

“Thank god you’re here,” the fire chief said, as the Avengers arrived and looked up at the burning building.

“What exactly is the situation?” Steve asked. “Tell us what you need us to do.”

“Gas explosion we think, but the entire ground level is on fire and our hoses aren't even putting a dent in it. If we can't get this thing under control it'll level the whole block,” the fire chief said. “We managed to rescue a lot of people before it spread, but the stairwell is blocked, and the fire escape on the north side of the building collapsed in the explosion. There are people still trapped, if we work together we can get them out before this place comes down.”

“We’ll do our best to help, sir,” Steve said, laying a hand on the man’s shoulder.

“Call it, Cap,” Tony said as he looked up at the swirling smoke.

“Thor, you can bring lightning, but can you bring storms? Like rain?”

“Aye, I can.”

“I need you to do that, it’ll make it harder for the fire to spread to neighbouring buildings if everything is soaked, and I mean _really_ soaked. I want buckets. So get up high and cause some storms.”

“I will,” Thor said. He spun Mjolnir and took off into the sky.

“Clint, Natasha, I want you on the ground helping to get people to safety when we bring them out. Liaise with the police and fire department to make sure people get as far away as possible just in case this thing comes down.”

“We’re on it,” Clint said, as he and Natasha moved over towards the fire command point.

“Bruce, that corner wall is starting to look shaky, if it goes the entire building will come down like a deck of cards. I need you to brace it to give people time to get out.”

Bruce nodded and grunted as he allowed the transformation to take over, his muscles bulged, his skin flushed green, and his shirt ripped as his body began to change. When it was complete Hulk stalked over to the corner of the building, police and firemen scattering out of his path, and placed his massive back against the bulging wall, forcing the bricks back into alignment.

“Tony, you have heat sensors?” Steve asked, and Tony nodded. “Will they work so we can find out where people are trapped inside the building?”

“Might be a bit difficult with so much heat from the fire, but with a few recalibrations I should be able to find them.”

“Good, I want you to stay in touch with Loki, because he has the most important job of all.”

“And that is?” Loki asked.

“When Tony locates people I need you to teleport in and bring them down to street level. We have no idea how many people are in there, and it could collapse at any moment, so you need to be fast and most importantly I need you to listen to Tony for directions. Can you do that?”

“I can,” Loki nodded.

“Good. I'm gonna be down here waiting for you to bring the people out, so you bring them here to me when you find them, and I’ll make sure they get to safety.”

“You ready?” Tony asked as his faceplate slammed down.

“Yes,” Loki replied.

Tony blasted up into the sky, wheeling round the building in a slow arc as JARVIS calculated a recalibration that would allow him to see body heat through the thick smoke and residual heat from the flames below.

The sky turned an ominous shade of black over their heads, lightning forked through the clouds, and torrential rain began to fall.

Loki looked up at the clouds, his cape already sodden with water, and sarcastically said, “Oh, _thank you_ , Thor.”

 _“Calibration is ready…”_ Tony’s voice came over the comm. _“I got one. North side, third floor, second window from the right.”_

“Understood,” Loki replied.

He teleported to the room Tony had named and coughed on the choking smoke. The heat was almost unbearable and flames were starting to creep under the door of the apartment. He looked around, holding the corner of his wet cape over his mouth.

“I cannot see anyone. Are you sure it was this room?”

_“I can't pinpoint the exact location in the room, but someone is definitely in there. Check everywhere, people sometimes hide or fall during a fire.”_

Loki walked around the room, and then noticed something under the window, covered with a blanket. He pulled the blanket away to reveal an old man collapsed against the wall with his legs curled under his body.

“I'm coming out. Find me another,” Loki said, as he laid his hand on the man and teleported down to the street.

“Good job,” Steve said, as he picked the man up.

_“Forth floor, north side again. Picking up two people. First window on the right.”_

Loki nodded to Steve and teleported back into the building.

 

With Tony’s help Loki worked quickly, finding people overcome by smoke on the lower floors, and people who were conscious and terrified on floors higher up. They clung to him, desperate for escape from the flames that were moving higher up the building, despite the best efforts of the fire department outside. They thanked him profusely when they found themselves in the street outside the building, safe and alive.

“That’s number 47,” Steve said as Loki brought out a terrified young woman. “You holding up OK?”

Loki coughed and scrubbed at his eyes with the heels of his hands. “I will be fine.”

_“Just found another on the second floor. North side again, corner of the building, first window. It’s getting pretty hot in there, you better hurry up.”_

“I hear you,” Loki replied.

The Hulk roared loudly, pushing his back desperately against the damaged wall, which was starting to crumble under the weight of the building above it.

“Everyone get out of here!” Steve cried. “It’s coming down!”

Police and firemen ran, and Steve grabbed the woman and dragged her down the street.

Loki closed his eyes and teleported back into the building.

 _“What are you doing? That place is about to collapse. Get out of there NOW!”_ Tony shouted over the comm.

“It will not harm me if it does,” Loki replied.

“Is someone there?” a voice asked.

“Where are you?” Loki asked, coughing on the thick smoke.

A woman wrapped in a wet towel, holding a young girl tucked against her side, burst from the safety of a wardrobe, grabbed Loki’s arm, and shrieked, “You have to help-”

Loki heard a strange sound, a thud in the distance, then the world lurched to the side as the floor beneath their feet tilted and vanished. He watched as the desperate woman threw her arms out as she fell, losing her grip on the child in her arms who tumbled through the hole in the floor, and Loki quickly encompassed them in a deflection spell so they wouldn't be crushed by the weight of the falling debris.

 

“No!” Thor shouted, watching as the building pancaked flat, sending waves of rubble and dust exploding out.

He flew down to the ground from his position on a crane that hung out over the street and landed by the heap of wreckage, quickly joined by Iron Man.

“Did my brother escape?”

“No,” Tony replied as he lifted his faceplate. “I told him to get the hell out of there. He said it wouldn't hurt him if it did. I hope to god he was right.”

Steve ran towards their position and asked, “Loki and Hulk?”

“Still in there,” Tony replied.

“Can you scan for them?”

“There’s so much heat now,” Tony said, as he scanned the wreckage. “Everything is compacted and I can’t get a lock on individual sig-”

There was a roar and bricks erupted from the pile as Hulk clawed his to the surface of the rubble. He climbed out, standing on top of the collapsed building and roared again, then walked over to the Avengers, dusting himself down nonchalantly.

“Good to have you back,” Steve said, and Hulk grunted in reply. “So that’s one down, one to go.”

There was a flash of light and Loki appeared before them, the woman clutched against his side.

“Brother!” Thor shouted triumphantly. “You have survived.”

Loki shrugged. “Magic has many uses.”

The woman began to squirm against his side, making unintelligible sounds.

“You’re safe, Ma’am,” Steve reassured her.

“Where is she?” the woman shrieked. “Where is SHE?”

“What?” Loki asked.

“My daughter, she was in my arms, and now she’s gone.”

“I wrapped the spell around us all, she should have been safe,” Loki said desperately, then he looked at Thor, and said, “I thought she’d be safe. I thought I’d done it right.”

“You let her die!” the woman screamed, beating her fists on Loki’s chest. “It’s your fault she’s dead and I'm still here! Why didn't you take her and leave me behind?”

Steve grabbed the woman’s wrists and pulled her towards him, wrapping his arms around her. “Why? Why? Why?” she said over and over as Steve led her away.

Loki wiped at his soot-streaked face, and said, “I thought I had her.”

Thor wrapped his arm around his shoulder. “I know you tried your best, Loki.”

“My best was obviously not good enough,” Loki snapped, pushing him away. “A child is dead now because of me.”

“And 48 people are alive because of you,” Tony said.

“You think that will comfort a grieving mother?” Loki shouted. “It is my fault she is dead!”

“You can’t blame yourself for this,” Tony said.

“Watch me,” Loki replied, then he moved over towards the smouldering rubble and started to dig.

 

*

 

It was dark before Loki allowed Thor to lead him away and let the rescue team continue the search for survivors. Tony had scanned the wreckage for hours, hoping to find some trace of the girl or other survivors, but in his heart he knew there was no hope of finding her alive.

As Loki sat in the back of the Quinjet he thought back on the spell he had cast and couldn't understand how it had not wrapped itself around the child. He had let her slip through his fingers like so many of his own children before her.

When he reached the tower he ignored Bruce’s pleas for him to go to medical for a check up after inhaling so much smoke, and instead headed down to William’s new room.

Loki tapped gently on the door and waited for a reply, but he heard no sound from inside the room. Slowly he pushed the door open, expecting William to be reading in the large armchair by the window, but it was empty and the room lay in darkness. Loki entered quietly and saw William laid in bed, sleeping peacefully, and even though he knew he should leave he felt the desperate urge to stay with him for a while.

Loki watched the slow rise and fall of his chest, noting that the boy looked even younger when sleeping, without the serious look that he usually wore. He thought about the battle that William had left behind him and the fact that his son, his child, would one day have to go back to that.

Loki sighed quietly, surprised by how much that idea upset him. He had only known the boy a week; he hadn't felt him grow inside him, seen him come into the world, take his first step or play in the palace gardens, and yet knowing that he would see these things eventually was somehow enough now. In the future he would have a child, one who would be able to grow up on Asgard, a child who wouldn't have to be sent away for it's own safety and the safety of others, and who would be accepted by all.

He moved his hand out, desperately wanting to brush his fingers over his son’s hair, but he looked so peaceful, and instead he quietly tip toed out of the room, closing the door behind him.

 

*

 

The man stood in the shadows of the alleyway, idly sucking on a cigarette, surrounded by the contents of the last handbag he had stolen, as he waited for his next victim.

The woman he’d taken it from was old and had fallen when he ripped the bag from her arms. He ran away, leaving her screaming in pain in the middle of the dark street, but he didn't care about her, all he cared about was his next fix.

He heard footsteps, poked his head around the corner, watching as a grey haired woman shuffled slowly along the pavement and began to cross the road. He discarded his cigarette on the floor and left the shadows, stalking silently after her.

The woman didn't scream as he grabbed the bag and tried to tear it away from her, but the handles were looped over her arm securing it to tightly to her. He pulled again, dragging her towards him, then the woman looked at him with no fear in her eyes, and grasped his wrist in a punishingly tight hold.

She laughed; her high pitched cackling lowering in tone as her features began to change and warp, and the man gasped as her hair turned dark, her clothes changed, and he found himself face to face with a dark haired young man.

“You picked a _bad_ day to be a criminal,” William growled as he closed his hand tightly, shattering the bones under his fingers.

The man screamed in agony, trying to pull away, and tripped over his own feet, falling backwards. “Let me go,” he shrieked. “I-I won’t do it again.”

William grinned and twisted his hand, sending the crushed bones of the man’s wrist tearing out through his skin. “And how do I know you are telling the truth?”

The man screamed again. “I-I swear it!”

“And the word of a common criminal is to be trusted now? I think not.”

“Please…” the man whimpered. “Please, let me go.”

William looked down at the cowering man for a second, conjured a long thin blade, and thrust it into the man’s stomach.

“A dagger wound to the abdomen is a particularly slow and painful way to die,” William said as he twisted the knife deep inside the man’s gut and neatly severed his aorta. “Fortunately for you I have an intimate and practical knowledge of the inside of the human body.”

The criminal’s eyes went wide as blood gushed from the wound, then slowly closed as his head fell back against the road.

William allowed his knife to vanish and wiped his hand on the dead man’s jacket. He stood, looking down at the corpse at his feet for a moment, and smiled. He tilted his head to the side and felt the air move around his body as his room in Stark tower materialised around him.

He moved his fingers, forcing the clone that occupied his bed to dissipate, and then removed his clothes. He slid between the crisp white sheets and chuckled to himself as he caught a hint of the aroma of the dead man’s blood on his hand.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will be posted tomorrow :-)


	5. Chapter 5

Thor confessed to Tony after the apartment building collapse that he was worried for his brother’s state of mind, and for the next week they all watched him like a hawk, looking for any signs he might be depressed or feeling guilty, but Loki seemed content to follow William around like his shadow.

It was a quiet time, without a single call out for alien invasions or cackling villains, and everyone enjoyed the break from the usual craziness.

 

“What are you up to today?” Tony asked when he found Thor, Loki and William sat outside by the landing pad, enjoying the morning sun.

“We were considering taking William to see the wonderful sights of Midgard,” Thor answered.

“Cool,” Tony said as he sat on a spare sun lounger and inspected his phone. “Anywhere special planned?”

“I spent a lot of time in New York as a child so I am quite familiar with most of it,” William said. “But I would very much like to visit the Natural History Museum. It would be lovely to see it before they brought in the holographic displays.”

“Holographic displays?” Tony asked, suddenly perking up.

“I-I really should not speak much of the future,” William said, raising an eyebrow. “It may cause problems.”

“True, true, but _holographic_ displays?”

“I'm afraid I’ve said too much already,” William said suspiciously.

“Meh… you’re boring,” Tony said going back to his phone. “And… oh, my shares went up. Looks like I'm richer than I was this time yesterday.”

“You are _always_ richer than you were this time yesterday,” Loki said.

“There's a delightful picture of me attending that charity gala on Thursday night on here. Wanna see?”

“No,” Loki replied.

“Oh, and another body found in an alleyway last night. The press think someone is copying Dexter.”

William looked over the top of his book and asked, “Copying what?”

“Dexter. You wouldn't have seen it, it’s a TV show about a guy who kills criminals, kinda like a vigilante, but he’s also a crazy serial killer himself.”

“That does not sound like pleasant entertainment,” he replied with a frown.

“So, museum, right?” Tony asked, putting his phone away.

“Aye, it sounds like a wonderful quest,” Thor said cheerfully.

“It’s not a quest, Thor. We aren't going to get anything, rescue anything, or find anything,” Loki said disdainfully.

“Aye, but I seek a bookmark as a gift for new nephew who loves to read, and that makes it a quest!” Thor said playfully. He stood, pointed to the sky, and loudly pronounced, “To the museum!”

“Shit, yeah!” Tony shouted. “To the museum!”

Loki rolled his eyes.

 

*

 

William announced he was going to bed at around ten pm, as he was tired out from his long day of sightseeing and excitement. When he was back in his room, the door safely closed behind him, he created a clone.

“Get in,” he said, staring into its blank eyes. It moved slowly, pulled back the sheets, and climbed into the bed. “Now sleep.”

He watched as the clone closed its eyes, its breathing slowed, and then he teleported away out into the city.

 

 

William walked through the dark streets, looking for suspicious activity, waiting for something or someone to attract his attention, and thought about Stark’s words earlier that day. Was it so bad to be a vigilante? Stark and the Avengers regularly killed criminals, invaders and others who deserved it, so why should he be judged differently for the same actions?

He paused at the end of an alleyway, watching a man walk down the other side of the road, peering into cars. The man stopped, placed something against the window, and tapped it with his other hand. The window shattered with a dull pop, the man reached inside the car, and then ran down the street.

William teleported to dark doorway further down the street and watched as the man ran into an alleyway, stopping by a dumpster. He pulled the back off the phone he had stolen, removed the battery, and threw the sim card on the floor. He put the phone back together and then walked out into the street.

William trailed behind the man, hiding in the shadows where the dim glow of the streetlights did not reach, and watched as he entered a bar. He waited outside for a few minutes and then followed him in.

The bar was mostly empty and the few people inside its dirty walls made William’s lip curl in disgust. He crossed the room, caught the barman's eye and said, “Bottle of beer, please.”

“Got ID?” the man asked.

“I have,” William replied, pulling a blank piece of paper from his pocket, which he held up as he cast a glamour over the paper to make the man see exactly what he wanted him to see.

The barman looked at it briefly, nodded and popped the top off a beer. “Sorry, but you understand, we gotta card people. You don’t look your age at all.”

“You’re only doing your job,” William replied as he reached for his beer and took a long drink. As he placed the bottle back on the bar he handed the piece of blank paper to the barman. “Keep the change.”

“Very generous! Thanks,” the man replied, he rang the sale into the cash register, and then placed several bills in the tips jar.

“You’re welcome,” William said, as he picked up his bottle again and turned round to scan his eyes across the room. The man he had followed in came out of the bathroom, and as William watched him walk towards the bar he was distracted by door swinging open.

Another man entered and suddenly William forgot all thoughts of killing and revenge. The man was gorgeous; suddenly he ached to be touched, to be held, and to be loved. He uttered a few words under his breath and waited for the stranger to notice him.

 

*

 

As the first light of dawn started to peak through the nicotine stained net curtains of his small apartment Joe was dragged awake by the dappled light falling on his face. Normally he would curse himself for forgetting to close the curtains, but this morning was different. He was feeling pretty good, as it wasn't every day that you went into a bar and got hit on by a beautiful woman, let alone one who wanted to come home with you.

He’d only dropped in the bar after a bad day, feeling the need to drown his sorrows in the nearest place that served alcohol, even if it was a dive. He hadn't noticed her at first, he’d made his way over to the bar, ordering his favourite beer, then he turned and found himself face to face with the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen in real life.

She was like a movie star with her long black hair and huge brown eyes, and she laughed, placing her hand on his arm when he blurted out a ridiculously cheesy chat up line.

Within ten minutes they were kissing, within 20 they were walking down the street to his apartment, and occasionally she would pull him into the shadows to run her hands possessively down his body.

When they reached his tiny apartment she had pushed him on the bed, and his neighbours banged on the walls, complaining loudly about the noises the woman was making and she had laughed, screaming even louder as Joe moved against her. He wondered if he dare wake the woman and he turned to face her, but instead found a dark haired young man lying in the bed next to him.

“What the _fuck_ …” Joe whispered to himself as he gently slipped out of the bed. He fumbled on the floor, picking up his boxers, and pulled them on as he backed away across the room.

He thought back to the night before. He knew he wasn't drunk; he hadn't even finished half his beer before ‘she’ had dragged him out into the street. Had he been drugged? Did she do _something_ to him? Maybe he was just going crazy? He suddenly felt sick and ran into the bathroom, barely making it to the toilet before he threw up.

“You didn't drink that much last night did you?” an amused voice came from the other room.

Joe stood up and wiped his face with a towel. His hands shook as he placed it back on the side of the bath and he moved back into the bedroom.

“I want you to leave,” Joe said. “This was a mistake.”

The young man raised an eyebrow, then purred, “You didn't seem to think it was a mistake when I had your cock in my mouth, darling.”

“You need to leave, _now_.”

“Are you this rude to everyone you sleep with?” the young man asked, as he climbed out of the bed.

Joe watched as he picked up his trousers and pulled them on. _Trousers_. The woman had been wearing a dress the night before, he was sure of it. “Who the hell are you?”

“Tsk, tsk. I told you my name last night. Are you always this forgetful, or was it the lack of blood flow to your brain?”

“Get out now!”

The young man pulled his T-shirt on, sidled across the room and seductively said, “Not even going to give me a goodbye kiss?”

“GET OUT!” Joe shouted, pushing him in the chest.

He looked confused for a second and then his mouth dropped open in sudden realisation. “Oh, you can _see_ me?”

“GET OUT!” Joe shrieked, pushing the young man violently.

The boy staggered back, his feet catching in the shirt that Joe had discarded on the floor the night before, and he fell backwards, slamming his head on the sharp corner of the table on his way down.

Joe’s eyes went wide with horror. The boy lay on the floor, his eyes staring blankly at the ceiling.

“No, no, noooo…” Joe said desperately as he knelt next to the boy and shook him. “Wake up, wake up!”

He laid his head on the boy’s chest and involuntary tears leaked from his eyes when he realised there was no heartbeat.

“What the hell did you do that for?” Joe shouted, as he stood and tears ran down his face. He kicked the body roughly in the ribs and shouted, “You stupid fuck! Why didn't you just leave?”

He had to do something. If he reported the boy’s death he knew with his criminal record there was no way this would be written off as an accident, and even if it was he would still face a long time in jail.

“I'm not going back,” Joe muttered. “I'm _not_ going back.”

He pulled the sheet off the bed and tucked it over the body, glad to be finally covering those blank, lifeless eyes. He tilted it one side to wrap the sheet under it and saw the large pool of blood that would need to be cleaned later.

Joe almost vomited when he saw the huge hole in the back of the boy’s skull and the way his brain bulged out. He looked around, wondering where the missing bone was, and realised it had pushed inwards, killing him instantly.

He continued until the sheet was tightly wrapped around the body like a shroud and then stood up.

 _‘DNA,’_ Joe thought. _‘We had sex. My DNA will be all over him’_ and he knew what he had to do.

 

*

 

It was still early and no one witnessed Joe carry the rolled up carpet that had previously covered his bedroom floor down to his car and dump it in the trunk. He drove through the streets until he came to an old abandoned warehouse by the river and he carried the roll inside.

The carpet burned quickly, it didn't take long before Joe could smell the disgusting scent of burning flash and started to gag. He wanted to leave, to run as far as way as possible, but he knew he had to stay and check that the fire didn't go out. The fire had to burn until all the evidence was gone.

Thirty minutes later and the carpet had burnt through revealing the charred skin and muscle underneath it. Once he had got over the initial shock of the smell Joe began to find watching the process of a body burning to be almost morbidly fascinating. He watched as the head burnt, and was almost amused when the large chunk of skull fell out of the hole, landing among the burning embers.

As the fire burnt out Joe was confident he had done enough. Any DNA evidence on the body would be long gone and he turned to walk towards the exit. He heard a sound come from behind him and turned, expecting it to be a bird fluttering around in the rafters.

“No!” Joe shrieked as he saw the still smouldering body struggling to stand among the ash.

The thing moaned, an awful keening, breathy sound as it finally stood and began to stagger across the floor on half formed feet.

Joe looked in horror as it stood in front of him; it raised its fingerless right hand and smashed it through his chest.


	6. Chapter 6

Loki was woken from a strange dream by an odd sound and as he opened his eyes an overpowering stench made him grimace.

He turned on the bedside lamp and looked around, but the room appeared to empty. The smell was still lingering in the air, and it reminded him oddly of the time they had held a barbeque on the roof, Tony had drunkenly insisted on being in control of it and burnt everything.

The sound came again, a gentle moan and raspy breaths. Loki ripped back the sheets and moved to the end of the bed, towards the source of the noise.

“Father,” a voice came from the near darkness.

“William,” Loki gasped as he saw his son on the floor, his skin burnt black, with deep cracks crossing its surface where it had split open. “W-what happened to you?”

“I’ll be all right, just give me a moment,” William replied, as Loki quickly moved down from the bed and pulled him into his arms.

In the half light Loki watched as the charred flesh healed itself quickly, and the missing fingers on his damaged right hand began grow back. He swallowed, forcing down the bile that had been crawling up his throat, and said, “Your healing skill is remarkable.”

“My greatest gift,” William replied, as the skin on his face began to grow and hair sprouted from his new scalp, “And my curse.”

“Did someone do this to you?” Loki asked sternly. “Tell me and I will make them pay for what they have done.”

“A man. I-I can't shapeshift so I used a glamour to make myself look like a woman to him, but I feel asleep and it failed,” he replied, and then quietly added, “He was _terribly_ angry when he saw me.”

“I will gut him,” Loki growled.

“He’s already dead,” William whispered. “Please don't be angry with me.”

“I'm not angry with _you_ in the slightest,” Loki replied, pulling a blanket from the bed and wrapping it around his son’s fully healed and naked body. William closed his eyes, curled himself around Loki, and he had to ask, “Why did you go with him? Did he force you?”

“No,” William replied. “I just wanted someone to hold me. Someone to love me.”

“You do not need to find those things in the arms of a stranger.”

“Really?” William asked, opening his eyes. “This is the first time you've done anything other than pat me on the back.”

“I'm sorry if I have offended you,” Loki said as he brushed a tear away from Williams’s cheek, “but you must understand that this is very strange for me, to discover I have a son, one I haven’t even given birth to yet or watched grow. I found it difficult at first, to know how I should feel, but you-”

“You don’t love me do you?” William asked.

Loki opened and closed his mouth, struggling to find the words that would convey exactly how he felt, but he didn't _know_ how he felt. Did he love the boy like a parent should? No, but that didn't mean he didn't care, but he knew if he was honest William would likely devastated.

“I knew it. I knew you didn't love me,” William said, as he pushed Loki’s hand away and sat up.

“I do, it’s just that-”

“I thought it would be better here,” William rambled, as he climbed to his feet. “I thought it would make everything go away, but it hasn't.”

“Where are you going?” Loki asked. “I forbid you to leave the tower again without me.”

“ _Oh_ ,” William said sarcastically. “So _now_ you want to be my father? Now you want to set rules and tell me what time to go to bed?”

“You could have been killed out there!”

“And that’s the problem,” William hissed as the air shimmered around him and he was suddenly clothed in a pair of simple black trousers and a T Shirt. “I _can’t_ die.”

Loki looked up at him, briefly stunned at the second display of magical powers that his son had kept hidden, and then quietly replied, “You may think yourself immortal, but _everything_ has an end.”

“Not me, I’ll be the only survivor of Ragnarok if this continues,” William laughed, and Loki stared at him with a look of confusion on his face. “I die a mortal death, but I always come back. My healing power knows no limits, and believe me it has been _tested_.”

“Tested? Who would _dare_ to lay a hand on my child?” Loki growled, as he stood up.

William looked away for a moment, lost in thought, and whispered, “Thanos.”

“What?” Loki gasped. He moved across the room and took William by the shoulders. “You tell me what he did to you. You tell me the truth, now!”

“He took me. He wanted you, but his portal into Asgard was closed before his army could bring you to him. He said that that if he tortured me you would know and willingly submit to him, but he was wrong.”

“I will kill him,” Loki said angrily.

“Kill him?” William asked with a snorting laugh, as he pushed Loki away roughly. “You didn't even bother to _come_ for me, so don’t tell me you will kill him!”

“I did not come?” Loki asked. “How long did he hold you for?”

“Three hundred years,” William replied quietly.

“Thee hundred?” Loki gasped. “How… how is that possible?”

“Three hundred,” William nodded. “Three hundred years of pain, and torture and blood. Half my life I _waited_ for you. I waited for so long and you _never_ came.” He turned, faced his father, and asked, “Why didn't you come for me?”

“I-I don’t know. Perhaps we couldn't find you, or-”

“Or perhaps you didn't care?”

“No. You’re my son. I would have never have left you there by choice. Something must have happened to prevent me.”

“You think you are such a good and caring father,” William said, shaking his head.

Loki paused, and then said, “I know I'm not a perfect father, but I love my children.”

“So where are they?” William asked as he looked around. “You have children now, but I don't see them here with you.”

Loki couldn't stop the twitch of his eye as he thought back to the day he had left each of his children, and remembered how heart broken he was when he walked away from them. He composed himself again, and said, “You know where they are, and why.”

“Oh, _yes_ , the mother of monsters keeps ejecting vile creatures from his poisonous womb!” William said loudly, waving his hands extravagantly in the air, and then he pointed at Loki. “YOU let them all be thrown away like the beasts they are!”

“None of you are monsters!” Loki cried. “Jörmungandr grew too large, Fenrir was-”

“Inconvenient? Just like it was too inconvenient for you to come for me?” William asked. Loki went to speak, but William stalked across the room, and said, “Do you know what it’s like? To be tortured for 300 years and end up without a single scar, a single scratch to display the pain that you went through? To die again and again and _again_ , and not a mark on your body?”

“I can’t even begin to imagine it,” Loki answered honestly. He had known his share of pain; he had suffered sewn lips and dripping acid, and still lived without a mark on his body, but 300 years of torture? He couldn't even begin to comprehend what that would be like. Loki knew Thanos, he knew what he was capable of, and he knew just how tight a grip he would keep on his precious prize, but here William was, and he asked, “Who rescued you?”

“You think me weak?” William scoffed. “You think I was incapable of escaping once my magical abilities fully matured and I was able to doing something other than heal? I _decimated_ the Chitauri before I opened the portal and would have killed Thanos if he had been there.”

“ _You_ opened the portal?” Loki asked. “If you opened the portal then you could go back to your own time. Take me with you and we could go back to when Thanos took you and prevent it happening."

"That would not work," William said. "My ability to travel in time is like walking the paths between the realms, but the doors only open to times when I do not already live elsewhere."

"You could go home,” Loki suggested. "I am sure I will be there waiting for you for y-”

“Home?” William laughed. “Why would I want to go there? To see the father who left me to be gutted every single day, to watch my own entrails be fed to ravenous creatures before I died, and then wake up whole to have the process repeated again and again?”

Loki thought for a moment. Something was wrong with this situation. The child hated him and thought he had been abandoned, and he asked, “If you think ill of me then why have you come here?”

“I want your help,” William stated, and then continued desperately, “I have tried everything from fire, to explosions, to even the cold vacuums of space, but _nothing_ works.”

“What is it you are asking of me?” Loki asked suspiciously, knowing he would probably not like the answer he was about to receive.

“I want you to kill me.”

“ _What?_ ”

“I’ve tried in every way I can think and you and the Avengers are great warriors, so surely you and they can find a way to end my life?”

Loki stared at him open mouthed, and couldn't quite believe he had heard the boy correctly. He shook his head. “No. Absolutely not.”

“Can't you see that I am in _pain_ and I need your help to end it?” William begged. “I can’t carry on when I feel like this an-”

Loki held his hand up. “I will not have this conversation.”

“Please, fath-”

“NO!” Loki snapped as he turned and moved towards the door. “You will not ask me that question _EVER_ again.”

Loki walked out into the corridor, William ran after him, trotting along at his side, and as they entered the kitchen he begged, “Father, _please_.”

“Do not ask me such things,” Loki hissed. “I will NOT do it.”

William stood for a moment, his fists balling with rage. “I knew you didn't love me. If you did you would help me.”

“I _do_ love you,” Loki said, grasping William's T Shirt with his hands.

“No you don’t,” William cried. “I’ve done everything I can to try to make you love me and it’s never enough! Even here, after all I’ve done, I am rejected at every turn!”

“You have been made welcome here. No one has rejected you,” Loki said, as he cupped his hand to the side of his neck.

“I asked Stark if I could join you and the other Avengers on a mission, but he said no.”

“There are procedures to follow,” Loki told him. “Fury is in charge, and it is he who chooses who will decide if and when you are allowed to join us, not Stark.”

“Will you tell him what I can do?”

“I will, when the time is right,” Loki replied softly.

“Today. It must be today. You can tell him what I did to the criminals.”

“The criminals?” Loki asked. “The ones on the news reports?”

“Yes, I’ve been going out at night and leaving a clone in my bed. I waited for them to do bad things and then I killed them just like you do, father,” William said happily.

Loki was stunned. There had been so many deaths reported that he had lost count of the killer’s current tally, and lately rumours of strange mutilations, of corpses with their bellies cut open and organs scattered about had begun to surface. They were terrible crimes, and Loki wondered what had driven his son commit them.

“ _Why_ would you do such a thing?” he asked.

“I thought it would make you happy,” William said with a note of confusion in his voice.

“No, no, _no_ ,” Loki repeated, grasping the sides of his hair in frustration. “You can’t just kill people!”

“You did,” William said, seemingly stunned that he was not being congratulated. “You tried to kill an entire race.”

“I was _ill_ when I did that.”

“Then perhaps I am ill too,” William said quietly. “Perhaps I should be given a merciful death before I can hurt anyone else.”

“Child,” Loki said, raising his hands to William’s face. “You must put these thoughts out of your mind because I will not do what you ask.”

William angrily pushed Loki’s hands away. “I will not stop asking. I will ask until you are so tired of hearing my voice you will put me out of my misery.”

Loki turned away and said, “Ask as often as you wish for I will not grant your request.”

William pulled a long carving knife from the block that was stood on the kitchen worktop, he admired it for a second, taking in the gleaming surface, and razor sharp tip, and said, “Perhaps I will make you.”

Loki felt a fist strike his back, and was about to turn to give his son a stern lecture about striking his elders, when he looked down and saw the tip of a knife poking out of his chest. He couldn't help the small laugh that escaped him, half shocked, half thinking about the irony of the fact that now he knew just how Coulson felt, and then cried out as the knife twisted inside his body.

“I will attack,” William hissed into his ear, “and I will keep attacking until you find a way to give me what I want and end my life.”

“No,” Loki said, coughing at the taste of blood in the back of his throat. “I will never do it.”

“I will give you no choice,” William whispered, and then teleported away.

Loki felt the pressure on the knife release and he fell against the fridge, letting himself slide down it until he landed in an ungainly heap on the floor.

“Sir,” JARVIS said. “I see that you are injured. Do you require medical assistance.”

“No,” Loki replied. “I just need to remove the knife and I will heal.”

“Very well, sir.”

Loki brought his right hand round and found he could only touch the handle of the knife with his fingertips, but could not get enough grip on it to pull it out. He tried to lift his left arm, but the pain was intense.

“Sir?” JARVIS asked. “Should I wake your brother and inform him that you need assistance?”

“No, there is no need,” Loki said, as he reached round again to try to reach the handle.

“I feel I should warn you that scans indicate that the knife has punctured the left ventricle of your heart, sir.”

“Do be quiet,” Loki said as he placed his fingertip against the pointed end of the knife and pushed it back into his body. “I am quite capable of healing such an injury. I am in no danger.”

Blood suddenly gushed from the wound, pouring down Loki’s chest in waves.

“Oh,” Loki said, and he passed out against the fridge.

 

 

The first thing that Loki noticed when he began to slowly wake was that he appeared to be bouncing through the air in time to a heavy clumping sound. The second thing he noticed was the random babbling going on somewhere to the left of his head.

“Don’t you die, Loki,” Tony said as he ran alongside Thor. "Don't you dare die!"

“What?” Loki asked, cracking one eye open, and looking round in confusion.

“You have been attacked, brother,” Thor said, as he jogged down the corridor carrying Loki carefully in his arms

“You've been stabbed, Loki,” Bruce said calmly, from Thor’s right side. “We’re taking you down to surgery.”

“Surgery?” Loki asked, and then everything snapped back into place. “Stop! Stop running, Thor!”

They came to a halt in front of the elevator doors and Loki began to squirm. He opened his eyes, and fixed Thor with a furious glare. “If you know what is good for you, you will put me down, NOW.”

Thor sheepishly lowered Loki to his feet.

“Noooo,” Bruce said, taking hold of Loki’s arm. “You need to stay still.”

“Unhand me at once,” Loki said loudly. He looked from Thor, to Tony to Bruce and with a sigh of frustration he asked, “Well? Is one of you going to remove this knife from my back, or am I to stand here and suffer as none of you have the stomach for it?”

“You aren't healing,” Tony said. “I don’t know if the knife is magic or whoever did this did something to you, but you have to let the surgeons remove it.”

Loki rolled his eyes. “Of course I'm not healing, the knife is still in me, so would one of you kindly remove it so I can stop bleeding everywhere? I'm rather fond of these pyjamas.”

“Oohhhh,” Bruce said, suddenly understanding the situation. He moved behind Loki and took hold of the knife. “You ready?”

Loki took a breath and nodded, then let out a yelp of pain as Bruce quickly pulled the knife out.

“Are you well now, brother?” Thor asked.

“I am well enough,” Loki replied, knowing what was coming next.

“Who was it?” Tony asked. “Steve and the others are searching the building right now.”

Loki’s mouth went taut. “You do not want to know.”

“Someone came into _my_ tower and somehow circumvented every single security system I have. Even JARVIS said he doesn't have a clue who did it because he didn't see anyone, just a knife magically appear in your back, so yeah, you better believe I damn well wanna know who did it.”

Loki sighed. This was going to be hard to explain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Very sorry I haven't had a chance to reply to any comments yet. I have been working the last few days, but every single one has been read and very much appreciated! Thank you!


	7. Chapter 7

As Fury settled at the head of the table, with Coulson on his left and the Avengers seated along each side, he gave Loki a cold glare and said, “I have two questions for you. One, are you still absolutely sure he is your son?”

“Yes,” Loki nodded. “There is no question about it. He is my child.”

“And two, what kind of fucked up family are you? Running round trying to murder each other all the time,” he ranted, then raised a gloved hand and pointed at the brothers. “When this is over you are both having mandatory therapy.”

Thor nodded glumly and Loki was about to protest, but saw the look in Fury’s eye and though better of it. “Very well then.”

"And all this was caused by eating a heart," Fury said. "What's _wrong_ with you?"

Loki was momentarily taken aback, and then said, "Eating the heart of another is a great honour."

"For who? The eater or the... eatee?" Tony asked.

"To eat someone's heart shows that you cared greatly about them," Loki said, fixing Tony with glare. "It shows that you want their spirit to live on after they are dead.”

“He's totally my kid, isn't he?" Tony asked.

“As if I would eat _your_ heart, Stark. I can barely stand to look at you now, I would not want a permanent reminder of you,” Loki snapped, then he turned to Fury and continued, “A child conceived by such magical means is usually extremely powerful, and combines the best of both parents."

"Or the worst?" Fury asked.

"It is possible, yes," Loki answered, looking down at the table.

“I’ve read your report,” Fury said. “Why didn't we know he had all these extra… talents?”

Loki took a deep breath, already hating the direction the conversation was going in. “He said he wasn't very skilled and I had no reason to doubt that.”

“So you just took his word for it?”

“When I was his age I hadn't mastered half the skills I have now, so it did not seem unusual that his ability to use magic would still be developing.”

“And he never showed any signs of mental instability or criminal intent?” Fury asked, looking around the table.

“He always seemed nice enough to me,” Steve said. “He was quiet, polite, never put a foot wrong really.”

“You all agree with this assessment?” Fury asked.

“I had my doubts. Clint did too,” Natasha piped up, and Loki fixed her with a furious look. “Oh, come on, no one is that nice.”

“So exactly what are we dealing with here? What can he do?” Fury asked, folding his hands together and resting them on the desk.

“He can teleport, travel in time, and his healing skills are remarkable,” Loki replied. “He said he dies, but is resurrected every time.”

“That’s not… encouraging,” Fury said.

“And plainly he can do something else since he screwed with JARVIS,” Tony interjected. “I’ve checked the footage and he didn't even show on the cameras in the kitchen when he stabbed Loki. I literally have no idea how he could have done that, unless it was with magic.”

“Which rules out running a face trace on him,” Clint said.

“It’s running right now,” Coulson stated. “It sounds like he wants to be found and when he is we’ll pick him up.”

“Why do you think he wants to be found?” Bruce asked.

“He said he wants to die and he thinks we are the only ones capable of killing him,” Loki replied, giving Fury a pointed look. “Obviously that is NOT going to happen.”

“What are your plans for my nephew when you find him?” Thor asked with a troubled expression on his face.

“He’ll be arrested and charged with attempted murder, and-” Fury said.

“He did not attempt to murder me,” Loki interrupted. “He would have known that knife wound could never kill me.”

“AND murder,” Fury continued. “Are you forgetting the small matter of the seventeen people he killed in cold blood out on the streets?”

“All criminals,” Loki pointed out. “You should be thanking him for saving you from them. He probably saved more lives than he took.”

“I'm quite interested in his reference to space,” Coulson interrupted before a fight could break out. “Do you think there is any possibility that he might have exposed himself to space to see if it would kill him?”

“What are you suggesting, Agent Coulson?” Fury asked.

“Sir, might I remind you of Project Volkov.”

“Volkov?” Fury said. “That’s impossible.”

“Are you sure, sir? Given his ability to teleport, time travel, regenerate, and his apparent death wish, it seems like the perfect explanation for what happened.”

“Project Volkov?” Tony asked, his interest piqued. “What’s that and why have I never found the files?”

Fury sighed. “Project Volkov is top secret, so if one word of this is breathed outside of this room I will know who to have assassinated, Stark.”

“Won’t tell a soul, I promise. My lips are sealed,” Tony said, dragging his fingers across his mouth.

Coulson began, “Volkov is a crater on the far side of the moon and in 2002, while running scans to test the possibility of harvesting Helium 3 to power fusion reactors, NASA discovered something… interesting.”

“What was it?” Bruce asked quietly.

“A human skeleton,” Fury said.

“That’s impossible,” Tony said. “A skeleton, on the moon? I’ve hacked the SHIELD mainframe a dozen times and never found any reference to that.”

“Then perhaps you over estimate your hacking skills,” Coulson said with a polite smile.

“Two years ago an experimental cloaked ship was sent up to bring it back for further testing, they confirmed that it was a skeleton, and it looked human,” Fury said.

“So where’s this skeleton now?” Bruce asked.

“That’s the problem,” Fury said. “They never made it back. The craft had a problem on re-entry and fell into the Atlantic. It was never found and the last transmission received from the craft was ‘It’s alive.’”

Tony flopped back in his chair. “Whoa. That is some story. Have you guys got shivers running all down your spine, because I totally have?”

“You think this skeleton was my son?” Loki asked.

“Given your description of his regeneration, the report of your own injuries and how you were only able to heal after the knife was removed, I think it’s highly possible that he teleported himself to the moon at some point and stayed dead because there was no atmosphere, but he was somehow exposed to air inside the capsule which caused his healing to begin,” Coulson explained.

“But that was two years ago,” Loki pointed out. “Where has he been since then?”

“The Montauk Monster!” Tony suddenly shouted, and Loki scowled at him. “Hear me out, will ya? What if the ship fell in the sea, and his body was still in the ship until it got all broken down and part of it washed out? What IF part of him ended up near the beach near Montauk and started to regenerate as soon as it hit oxygen?”

“What if other parts of him wash up?” Steve asked. “Will they regenerate too?”

“That doesn't make sense based on Loki's information. I'd say it's more likely that it's one specific part of his body that regenerates, possibly even a single cell,” Bruce proposed.

“Well this is just great. An psychopathic evil villain on the loose who just happens to be indestructible too,” Clint snapped.

“My son is not a psychopath, and he most certainly is _not_ evil,” Loki hissed. “He is but a child who has been tortured in ways that you could never hope to understand!”

“Yeah, yeah,” Clint mumbled. “Like father, like son.”

Loki stopped and stared at Clint with his mouth open. They had had their issues in the past, and Loki knew after what he had done to Clint that it was only to be expected, but he thought they had worked through it. To hear him speak with such cruelty once again felt like a slap in the face.

“Agent Barton,” Thor said lowly. “My brother has fought by your side in many battles, he has saved the lives of countless mortals including many of the people sat at this table, and you repay him with these words?”

“I'm just tired of all the Norse god family issues that keep causing problems for the whole damn planet!” Clint shouted.

Loki stood up and walked towards the exit.

“Brother, where are you going?”

“I refuse to be insulted further,” Loki replied, slamming the door on his way out.

“Can we get back to the matter in hand?” Fury said. “What are we go-” He stopped talking as Thor stood up. “Where are you going?”

“To have words with my brother,” he replied as he left the room.

Fury sighed, rubbed his hand across his forehead and said, “Sometimes I feel like I'm living in a mythological episode of Jerry Springer.”

 

 

“Can I enter?” Thor asked, when he found Loki perched on the edge of William’s bed, rather than in his own room.

“It appears you already have,” Loki replied.

“What troubles you, brother?”

“Is it not obvious?”

“They will not be able to hurt him.”

“It’s not that,” Loki sighed, with a forlorn look on his face. “I’ve done it again.”

“Done what?” Thor asked as he sat by Loki’s side.

“Abandoned another child,” he replied quietly, looking at his clasped hands which lay in his lap.

“You have not abandoned him or any of your other children. You love them all equally,” Thor said as he draped an arm over Loki’s shoulders.

“Do I? Then why did I leave him in the clutches of Thanos for three hundred years?”

“These things have not even occurred yet, brother. You cannot know why you didn't rescue him, but I am sure that you will try until you succeed. Now you know perhaps you will be able to change these events before they even transpire.”

“At first I thought it strange, suddenly I had a son I didn't even know, and he wanted me to care for him. It was hard simply because I didn't know him, but then I realised, Thor, I was allowed to keep him!” Loki said. “I now know that one day I will have a child who I will watch grow. I had hope that I might have made up for those mistakes in the past through William, but apparently I abandoned him too.”

“No, Loki,” Thor said, turning to face him. “We will find him and we will bring him home.”

“It may be too late,” Loki replied sadly.

“It is never too late, brother,” Thor said, pulling him closer. “When we find him, and we will, you will find the words to save him.”

Loki smiled, wishing that Thor’s optimism would somehow leech into his body and wipe out the growing sadness that he felt.

 

*

 

Bodies writhed against each other as the bass line pumped out of the speakers and the crowd roared as the DJ raised his hands. The thousand people packed into the former warehouse were unaware that they were in the presence of a killer.

William stalked between the sweaty dancers and made his way to the centre of the floor. He chuckled to himself and said, “This is perfect.”

The air around him moved, glowing red, and his armour appeared on his body. Skin-tight black leather with small accents of gold and red hugged his wiry frame, a black cape skimmed his ankles, and a black horned helmet appeared on his head.

“Nice costume, honey,” a woman said as she moved through the crowd. “You celebrating something?”

“Oh, yes,” William replied, as he conjured a long knife into his hand. “I am indeed celebrating.”

The woman screamed as William plunged the knife into her stomach, drawing it upwards in a graceful arc, and as she fell to the floor he wheeled round and plunged his dagger into the back of the nearest man.

The dancers near him turned as bodies began to fall and they started to scream, pushing each other out of the way, climbing over fallen strangers in an effort to get away from the grinning killer.

 

 

“What have we got?” Steve asked, when he arrived in the Quinjet hangar after SHIELD had raised the alarm, and found Tony frantically flipping through a holographic display while Thor and Loki looked on.

“Disturbance in a club called 'The Skyline' on Columbus Avenue,” Tony replied. “Details are still coming through, but apparently someone got a bit slash happy.”

“Doesn't sound like our usual kinda job,” Steve said. “Why have SHIELD called us in?”

“No clue,” Tony replied, as he brought up another screen.

“Jet’s ready,” Clint shouted.

“Be there in a second,” Steve shouted back.

“Oh my god,” Tony said as the images from the clubs CCTV cameras flickered onto the screen and he looked at Loki. “It’s William.”

“What?” Thor gasped.

The Avengers looked at Loki, he looked back at them for a second, and then teleported away.

“Shit, shit, SHIT!” Tony shouted. “Thor, get over there now. I’ll be right behind you. You guys, get in the jet.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will be up in about 5 minutes. 
> 
> (Now starting to think I should just have just done longer chapters LOL. Didn't think I would have the time to post two a night when I was working!)


	8. Chapter 8

“Thank god you’re here,” the police chief said when Loki appeared outside the club. “Where are the others?”

“On their way,” Loki replied. “Where is he?”

“Inside,” the police chief replied. “He’s killed about 15 we think, including three of my officers. Won’t surrender. We tried tasering and shooting him, but he keeps getting back up so we thought it was a job for you guys.”

“You shot him?” Loki snapped, grabbing the chief by the arm angrily.

“We had no choice, he wouldn't put his weapons down,” the man paused, and then asked. “Is he one of your people? He’s dressed a lot like you.”

Loki looked around at the chaos his son had caused. The street was lined with ambulances taking away injured clubbers who had been caught in the crush at the exits, and all around him he heard people frantically searching for missing friends, calling their names and ringing their phones.

“I will deal with him,” he said, and walked towards the entrance.

 

 

The club was silent, but the coloured lights still pulsed idly as Loki made his way towards the dance floor where William stood, grinning, and surrounded by a pile of broken bodies.

“I told you,” he said as he motioned towards the corpses. “I gave you the opportunity to end this, but you wouldn't and now their blood is on your hands.”

Loki walked towards him, stepping over the bodies until he was stood before him, raised a hand to his cheek, and simply said, “Come home.”

“It’s too late for that,” he whispered, nervously twisting the knife in his hand.

Loki looked down. “You will not hurt me again.”

“Won’t I?” William asked, bringing the knife up, stabbing it towards Loki’s stomach until it met a barrier of magic.

“No, you won’t,” he replied.

A tear rolled down William’s cheek and his face twisted as he whispered, “Why won’t you _help_ me?”

“I will, I promise. Come back with me and we will talk.”

“Talking? How will that stop the pain I feel in every _single_ moment that I still draw breath?” William said bitterly as he beat his fist against his chest.

“It helps,” Loki promised. “It helped me when all I wanted to do was destroy everything, and myself along with it.”

“No, no,” William said, shaking his head. “It’s not enough.”

"Come home," Loki said again.

"I wish I could," William whispered. "I wish I could have a fairytale ending and live happily ever after, but those stories are a lie, and I shall find no peace."

"I can't promise you a fairy tale ending," Loki said. "But if you come back with me I promise things will be different."

"They will?" William asked hopefully, and Loki nodded.

There was a crash behind them and Loki turned to see Iron Man smash through the thin roof of the cavernous club and land with one arm outstretched, ready to fire his repulsors. “Put down the knife, kid. It’s time to give up.”

“Stark, NO!” Loki shouted.

William snarled, tightening his grip on the knife once more, and teleported out of the building.

“Where did he go?” Tony shouted.

_“Guys,”_ Clint’s voice came over the comm link. _“We need you outside RIGHT NOW!”_

 

 

“You took your time,” Clint said, as Thor landed in the street next to him. “I thought you’d be here before us.”

“I had to stop and ask for directions,” Thor admitted, his cheeks turning pink. “I am still unfamiliar with many areas of the city.”

“Next time I’ll draw you a map,” Clint said as he watched William standing on the roof of an ambulance, surveying the scene in front of him.

Loki pushed open the door of the club, walked out into the street, and stopped as he saw his son. He was bathed in the red light of the ambulance, head tilted slightly down, and a wicked grin on his face. His only movement was the heaving of his chest as he breathed deeply, and his fingers curling round the knife as he twisted it in his hand. Loki had seen Midgardian representations of evil, pictures of the devil and demons, but this was the closest he had seen to it in this realm. He was a truly terrifying sight.

“You need to come down from there, son,” Steve shouted, as Iron Man landed behind him. “We don’t want to hurt you.”

“Are all Midgardians as dull as you?” William asked, rolling his eyes. “That’s what I WANT!”

Steve edged closer to the ambulance, one hand outstretched in what he hoped was a calming gesture. “I know you do, but we're not murderers.”

“It wouldn't be murder. I will not be a victim. You will be setting me free.”

“Let us help you instead.”

William cocked his head to the side, raised a shaking hand as if he was about to climb down, and then grinned. A blast of energy erupted from his palm, clipping the edge of Steve’s shield, and it sent him crashing backwards.

“Hear me now,” William roared to the crowd of below. “If you will not end my life I will see to it that the streets of this city are awash with blood! Listen well, and send out the word that every death from here on was caused because your precious Avengers would not heed my simple request.”

William jumped down from the ambulance, landing gracefully. He raised his knife and said, “So it begins.”

Clint loosed an arrow as William came towards him, but a split second before it reached its target the boy disappeared, leaving the arrow to rebound off the back door of the ambulance and clatter onto the pavement.

A scream came from further down the street and a police officer fell to the ground, rolling and clutching his back.

Another scream to their right as a woman fell backwards, blood pouring from her neck.

To their left a man let out an agonised cry as he twisted to the ground clasping his side.

“What the hell is going on?” Natasha asked. “Is he invisible?”

“He’s teleporting,” Loki answered as screams echoed in the street and people continued to fall. “Faster than I’ve ever seen it accomplished before.”

Suddenly William was before them again, breathless, smirking, and the knife in his hand dripping blood onto the tarmac. “Who’s first?”

Before anyone could answer Tony grabbed him by the waist and blasted up straight into the sky at supersonic speed.

“I don’t know how many powers you have, kid, but I’ll bet flying isn't one of them,” Tony said when they reached a high altitude and came to a halt.

“Why don’t you drop me and we’ll find out what happens?” William rasped out.

“If I didn't think your dad would gut me in my sleep, I’d be tempted.”

“Let me fall,” he said, squirming on Tony’s grip.

“Stop wriggling will ya,” Tony snapped. “Even if you do fall you know I'm just gonna fly right after you and scoop you back up again, so settle down. There’s a cosy little cell with your name on it back at SHIELD.”

“If I fall you will not be able to catch me.”

“Oh yeah? What makes you think that?”

“Because you will be falling too,” William said, then he teleported out of Tony’s arms and re-materialised clinging to the back of his shoulders. He raised his arm and started stabbing desperately at the Iron Man suit with his knife, looking for any weakness he could find.

Tony started twisting through the air, trying to dislodge William, but there was a shower of sparks as the knife found a space between two plates and one of the thrusters on his back shut down, sending him into a flat spin.

Tony raised his hand, aiming backwards, shooting his repulsor, but without the thrusters on his back his flight became unstable and they began to tumble through the air.

William held on for one last moment, raising his arm again, thrust his knife down into the shoulder joint of the suit, and Tony screamed.

 

 

The other Avengers waited in the street below, their only view of the fight in the dark sky was the orange glow of Stark’s trail, and when it became erratic they secretly feared the worst.

They breathed a sigh of relief when the trail evened out, came towards them, and finally Iron Man landed in the street, collapsing into a heap as he hit the floor.

“Where is he?” Loki shouted.

“What?” Tony asked, as his faceplate moved up.

“My son, where is he?”

“He fell,” Tony said quietly.

“You let him fall?” Loki shouted angrily.

“Er, hello,” Tony said, twisting his body to display the knife still trapped in the joint of his suit. “If you hadn't noticed, the little bastard stabbed me in the back.”

Loki growled then set off walking down the street, and Thor shouted after him, “Brother, where are you going?”

“To find my son,” Loki shouted back over his shoulder.

“Do you want me to come with you?” Thor shouted, and Loki teleported away without answering.

 

 

Tony went back to the tower in the Quinjet with the rest of the team and against Bruce’s advice he made Steve pull the knife out so he could remove his suit.

One quick trip to medical later and he had 5 stitches, some itchy surgical tape holding a dressing on his back, and some pretty good pain killers, which he took just for the hell of it even though he wasn't in that much pain.

As he sat in bed, unable to sleep, still wired from the events of the day, he got the distinct feeling that someone was lurking outside his bedroom door, and he had a good idea who it was.

“You can come in, you know. Stop wearing a hole in my expensive carpet,” he called out.

The door opened Loki entered tentatively, closing it quietly behind him.

“Did you find him?” Tony asked.

“I found where he landed, but he had long since fled.”

“How do you know it was… _Oh_ , let me guess, big pool of blood?”

Loki nodded slowly, his hands twisting together anxiously. “I wanted to apologise for his actions. I can understand if you are terribly angry with him, and me.”

“I'm not angry at you,” Tony replied. “Although a little sympathy when I had a knife sticking out of my shoulder would have been good, especially since I was so nice and helpful when it happened to you.”

Loki’s mouth twitched at the corner, almost curling into a nervous grin. “When I was being carried to the healers you were babbling so much I thought you were about to cry.”

“True, but at least I didn't pass out like you did,” Tony said with a smile. He sighed and said, “Don’t worry about it. We’re good. Go get some sleep before you keel over.”

Loki’s eyes flitted between Tony and the door. “Are you sure?”

“Go on, get out of here,” Tony said with a wave of the hand. As Loki moved towards the door, Tony said, “When this is over you owe me a _really_ good bottle of Scotch.”

“You have my word that you will receive the finest,” Loki replied, as he left the room.

 

 

Loki decided against heading towards the kitchen for a snack, even though he knew at this late hour he would likely have the kitchen to himself, and instead decided to shower and sleep.

As he entered his room he smelt a coppery tang in the air, and as he turned on the light he found William sat on his bed dressed in a simple pair of black trousers and a short-sleeved T Shirt, dragging a knife across his arm repeatedly, allowing the blood to soak into the white sheets.

“What are you doing here?” Loki asked, as he quickly moved across towards the bed. “If the others find you they will hurt you.”

William hummed, drawing the knife across his skin again, and distractedly said, “That's the plan.”

“Please don’t do that,” Loki said, as he watched blood run down his sons arm and drip onto his trousers.

“Why should I not? I shall be left with not a single scar,” he replied, slashing the blade angrily across the inside of his forearm.

Loki watched as the skin peeled apart, blood welled from deep within the wound then solidified into unblemished flesh. “Because it hurts me to see you do it.”

William grinned, finally looked up, and said, “Good.”

Loki sat on the bed and placed his hand across the knife, stopping it from moving, but when the boy looked up something seemed wrong with the way his eyes roamed around the room unfocused. “Have you been drinking?”

“ _No_ ,” William replied with a huff of laughter. “When I have to heal my full body it has unfortunate side effects, makes it hard to concentrate and think properly, like my head is full of cotton wool.”

“Perhaps that is why you are acting this way,” Loki said, leaping on the new information. “We can go away, we can start a new life together. I can take you somewhere where you would have time to heal and would never need to do it again.”

William blinked at him. “It will never work.”

“Why ever not?”

“Because I hate you almost as much as I hate myself!” he snarled as he pulled the knife away and drove the point deep into his own thigh.

“Please don’t hurt yourself,” Loki begged again, as William pulled the knife out and clambered off the other side of the bed.

“I'm going to make you kill me,” he hissed. “If you don’t I will see to it that the Avengers die one by one, and it will all be your fault.”

A huge burst of flames made Loki raise his arm instinctively and when he turned back William was at the centre of them, his skin bubbling with blisters and peeling open as he forced the flames to burn brighter.

Loki trapped the flames with magic, sealing them off inside a bubble that glowed like a furnace as William screamed, driving the flames until they were like an inferno within.

Water poured from the ceiling as the fire alarm sounded, and as quickly as it had started the fire blinked out, leaving a charred, blackened corpse to collapse to the floor.

Loki knelt and picked up his son’s body, cradling him to his chest as the sprinklers continued to rain down, and he heard the thudding of feet running down the corridor.

Steve burst into the room, followed by Thor, Loki looked at them, and when he looked back down the corpse’s eyes were open.

William raised his hand, slashing his father across the cheek with the knife, and then teleported away, leaving Loki knelt among the ashes of his room, clutching his bleeding face, while the Avengers looked on.

 

 


	9. Chapter 9

“So William was here again last night?” Tony asked JARVIS the next morning, as he sat on a stool in his workshop.

“Apparently so, sir, although I can find no record of his presence in any logs,” the AI responded.

“Do the logs indicate any tampering with your code or systems?”

“No, sir. My firewall is intact. The Intrusion Detection and Prevention System indicates that there were no malicious activities or attempts to violate security policy,” the AI replied.

Tony sat back in his chair, twirling a pen between his fingers as he thought. “So you saw absolutely nothing strange at all last night.”

“No, sir. All conditions were normal, until the fire broke out.”

Tony tapped the pen on the desk. “So you can see his actions, you just can’t see him?”

“My cameras showed no signs of fire, however the temperature in the room rose so quickly that it triggered the automatic fire system.”

“So it wasn't even you that set that off?”

“No, sir,” JARVIS replied. “I detected nothing unusual in the room.”

“Other than the fact that Loki was talking to thin air?” Tony asked, clutching at straws.

“Mr Odinson frequently talks when there is no one in the room, sir. I would not rate that as a unusual occurrence.”

Tony raised an eyebrow, and said, “Play one of the video logs.”

“I'm afraid that would violate Mr Odinson’s privacy, sir. I am not a-”

“JARVIS,” Tony interrupted. “Unless you want to spend the rest of your life as the AI of my toaster, I suggest you show me the video logs right now.”

“Of course, sir,” JARVIS replied as a holographic screen flickered into life and showed the interior of Loki’s room.

There was the sound of clumping as Loki paced the floor in heavy boots, and finally moved into frame with his fingers knotted into the hair on either side of his head.

“They will never like you! Stop hoping that they will ever like you, you imbecile! You should never have come here!” Loki ranted as he moved across the screen.

“Is this from last night when he was talking to William?” Tony asked as he watched Loki pull at his hair.

“No, sir, this video is from approximately one week after Mr Odinson first arrived in the tower.”

“Show me something more recent. He can’t still be that nuts,” Tony said with a frown.

The video flickered and changed to a different angle, and Loki could clearly be seen sitting on the edge of his bed, with his shoulders hunched over.

Tony could hear a voice, but couldn't make out the softly spoken words. “What’s he saying?”

The volume suddenly increased, a hiss of static filled the room, and Loki quietly said, “You will never be good enough. You should not lie to yourself.”

“OK, turn it off,” Tony snapped. “Was that one from last night?”

“That video was from approximately one week before William arrived, sir,” JARVIS replied curtly.

“Did you deliberately show me the worst video files?”

“No, sir, they are all like that.”

“That’s… disturbing,” Tony replied.

“Sir, director Fury is in the lobby. He wished all Avengers to assemble in the conference room immediately.”

“Tell him I’ll be right there,” Tony said, as he headed for the door, “and if I ever ask to see those files again deny me access.”

“I will, sir,” JARVIS replied.

 

 

*

 

 

As the Avengers sat at the table Fury kneaded his brow, sighed, and said, “So we have a suicidal demigod on the loose, hell bent on destruction until we take him out?”

“Pretty much,” Tony replied. “I have to say though, I'm not all together comfortable with the idea of suicide by Avenger, even if he did stab me.”

“I will not allow you to kill my child,” Loki said sharply.

“OK… What about binding his magic? We did that to you with the manacles. Would it work on him?” Fury asked.

“And if you did that what do you think he would do first?” Loki asked. “He would climb to the top of the nearest high building and fling himself off it! I will not allow it.”

“He killed 24 last night at the club and the police reported finding another 6 dead criminals this morning. We can’t stand idly by and allow him to continue this rampage. What do you suggest we do?” Fury asked.

“Let me talk to him. Let me persuade him to come home.”

“He came home last night,” Clint pointed out. “How did that little chat work out for ya?”

Loki glared at Clint and then glanced at Thor when he felt a large hand fold over his wrist and pat it comfortingly.

“I hate to say this, Loki, but killing him might be the only way to stop him,” Natasha said. “I know he’s your kid, I understand that you don’t want to see him hurt, but if we end up in a situation where he’s threatening someone and I have a clear shot, I'm going to take it. I don’t have a choice.”

 

 

 

Things were tense in the tower for the next few days, even though the only evidence that William was still in the city were the morning news reports of the bodies of criminals found in alleyways and dumpsters.

Everyone was content to avoid Loki, and the feeling was mutual as he spent most of his time hidden away in his room, but when Tony bumped into Thor in the kitchen one evening his curiosity got the better of him.

“Where’s Earth’s Mightiest Sulker?” he asked, and Thor looked at him in confusion. “I mean Loki. How’s he doing?”

“He refuses to speak to me so I am unsure.”

“You too, huh?” Tony said.

Thor nodded. “I am worried for his state of mind. I have attempted to speak with him, but he will not listen.”

“Right, that settles it. I'm off to have a chat with him.”

“Would you like me to accompany you?”

“Nope, big fella, I can manage this one on my own,” Tony said, and he headed off down the corridor.

 

When he arrived outside Loki’s room he knocked loudly at the door. “Loki, I know you’re in there, probably listening to some emo song and being all ‘Woe is me, nobody loves m-’”

The door flew open and Loki stood, blocking the entrance. “What do you want?”

“I wanted to check you were OK.”

“I am, and now you have checked you can stop disturbing me while I am attempting to rest.”

“Really? It looks like you haven’t rested for days,” Tony said, and Loki rolled his eyes. “Stop sulking and come watch some TV with me. _Animals Do The Funniest Things_ is probably on. Guy getting kicked in the crotch by a Kangaroo, come on, you know you love that shit.”

“I am busy, Stark. I would appreciate it if you would leave me be,” Loki snapped. He slammed the door in Tony’s face, and placed magical wards against it, making sure he would not be disturbed for the rest of the night.

“What did he want?” William asked as he reclined on the bed.

“Nothing important,” Loki replied. “Stark is unable to keep himself from prying at times.”

“Come back here,” William commanded as he pulled back the bed sheets. Loki obediently followed the order, climbing into the bed, and laying with his back against his son’s chest.

William slung his arm over Loki’s body and whispered into his ear, “You should not get so attached to Stark, after all, he will die by your hand when you take over this realm.”

“I do not believe you,” Loki said.

“The rest of the Avengers too, you killed them all during your second attack.”

“I do not believe you,” Loki repeated. “My ambition is little now. I do not wish to rule this realm or any other.”

“And it was such a shame when you killed uncle Thor and grandfather, but they opposed you, so it had to be done.”

“I know you are lying.” Loki said, as he twisted in the bed, aiming the words over his shoulder. “You have already told me once that Thor was king in your time.”

“I told you what you needed to hear, this is the truth. You killed them for me.”

“No. No, no. I would not kill Thor, not now.”

“Loki, Loki, king slayer, _kinslayer_ ,” William taunted. “I hear the doubt in your voice. You know it to be true. Thor will die by your hand, just like your real father before him, and your fake father after him.”

“I know why you are saying this. It will not change my mind.”

“You know what you are capable of. You've done it before, and you can do it again, kinslayer.”

Loki wanted to wipe his face, but didn't want William to realise that the four nights of lies that he had whispered into his ear were starting to have an effect.

When he had appeared back in his room the night after setting fire to it Loki had not raised the alarm in hopes that spending time with him would allow him to talk his son around, to make him realise that he had a choice, and did not need to die. Loki attempted to make him see that he was loved and wanted, that he should go back to his own time where his future self would be waiting with open arms to welcome him back home, but as the nights wore on William's words began to claw their way under his skin.

The boy wove endless tales of death and destruction yet to come, how Loki would be abandoned by those he loved, and how he would rise again to take over Midgard. Once Midgard was his he used it to launch an attack against Asgard, and he won.

Could it possibly be true? Would he one day be king and murder his whole family and friends in order to take the throne? He had sworn two years ago that he would not allow himself to think such treacherous thoughts ever again, and yet here he was, wondering what it would take to turn him against the ones he cared most about.

William said he had done it for him, and while his heart ached to get through to the boy, to keep him safe, and to make him well, he still couldn't imagine turning on his friends after everything they had been through.

He closed his eyes and tried to sleep, attempting to block out the ceaseless murmurs and endless deceit.

 

*

 

Loki woke the next morning to an empty bed and the sound of an alarm blaring.

“JARVIS? What is happening?”

“I am sorry, sir, but your presence has been requested in the Quinjet hanger. There is an emergency which requires the presence of the Avengers.”

Loki’s stomach lurched. In his heart he already knew the cause of the disturbance, and he knew he would once again face his son on the battlefield

 

 

“Holy shit,” Clint said as the Quinjet came in to land, slowly descending into the street, and they saw William stab a construction worker on what would be the 14th floor of a skyscraper, which was currently a metal skeleton of beams, and push his body off the edge of the platform.

William caught sight of the Quinjet and grinned, then vanished as he teleported away.

“Where the hell did he go?” Natasha asked.

The Avengers moved forward, peering out of the cockpit window, hoping to spot the boy, and then a voice behind them said, “Good morning.”

“Shit!” Tony shouted as he turned and saw William standing in the back of the Quinjet. He raised his hands, preparing to fire, but Bruce was in the way.

Tony pressed his hand against Bruce’s back, trying to push him down so he could get a clear shot, but it was like pushing against stone. He tried pushing again, confused for a second, but when he heard the sound of tearing cloth he knew what was happening.

“Not here! Not here!” Tony shrieked, as Bruce, shocked by the sudden appearance of their enemy, started to transform into the Hulk within the confines of the small craft.

As his muscles began to expand, and his body began to grow the Quinjet began to list badly, and the Avengers found themselves trapped behind his massive bulk.

“We’re going down!” Clint shouted, struggling to control the jet with the extra weight that had suddenly appeared and knocked the ship off balance.

“Come on then,” William said, beckoning the beast towards him.

Hulk snorted, unable to stand upright inside the craft, shuffled a few steps closer, and pulled his arm back. He punched William so hard that his fist connected with the ramp at the back, knocking it open. The sudden rush of wind blew Hulk and William out of the jet, and Thor grabbed Loki by the waist as he screamed, to prevent him from throwing himself out after them.

With the weight gone the Quinjet bucked violently in the sky, almost flipping over, and with a screech of collapsing metal it smashed into the ground at the base of the building framework.

“Everyone OK?” Steve shouted as he hauled himself to his feet.

“Fine,” Tony replied.

“You’re bleeding, brother,” Loki said as he held out a hand and helped Thor up.

Thor ran his fingers over his forehead where he felt the thin trickle of blood and pulled his fingers away red. “It is just a scratch.”

They moved out of the wrecked jet and towards the Hulk’s position, where he was standing, looking down at something that lay on the ground.

“Is that… his foot?” Natasha asked, as she peered at the puddle of blood and tattered flesh where a boot lay abandoned with a stump of broken bone stuck out of it.

“Oh, that’s gross,” Tony complained. “He just _left_ his foot?”

“He has no need of it, he can simply regenerate a new one,” Loki told him.

“We need to clear this area, now,” Steve said. “If we can keep his attention on us there’ll be less civilian casualties. Everyone move out.”

They headed towards the construction site where Steve, Natasha, and Clint started ordering people to move away, while Loki, Iron Man, Hulk and Thor began rescuing people who were trapped on the upper levels.

“Have you seen him?” Loki asked over the comm link, as he teleported down to the ground and released a workman to safety.

Tony opened the door of a crane that stood on the 12th floor, checking that it was empty, and replied, _“Maybe he hobbled off somewhere to cry.”_ Tony turned and found himself face to face with the grinning killer. _“Oh shit!”_

Loki looked up and saw Iron Man raise his repulsors to the face of his son who simply stood, not moving to defend himself, and Loki unleashed a bolt of magical energy, which hit Tony in the side and knocked him from the building.

 _“What the hell did you do that for?”_ Tony shouted over the comm link as he stabilised his flight.

“I-I apologise, I was not thinking,” Loki said, and then he was knocked to the ground when William appeared out of nowhere and landed on him, his knees straddling either side of his chest, pinning him to the floor.

“Good morning, father,” William purred. “Did I not tell you that Stark would die by your hand? You did not believe me, and yet here we are. Believe me, this is just the first such blow you will strike against him.”

“Loki!” Thor shouted, he raised Mjolnir and ran towards his fallen brother, but Loki held his hand up. Thor was halted mid stride when he crashed into a barrier of magic, he raised Mjolnir, bringing it down onto the impenetrable bubble, and a haze of green sparks made him fly backwards.

“Loki, what the hell are you doing?” Steve shouted.

William leaned down till his face was just inches away from Loki’s then he turned to look at the Avengers who had gathered outside the shield. “Do you see it now? You would choose me over them, your friends and comrades, even your own brother. One day you will burn all the nine realms and I will stand by your side laughing.”

“Lies,” Loki whispered.

William sat back up, and barked, “I speak the truth!”

“You will not turn me against them,” Loki said.

William smiled a lopsided grin. “I think I already have, or perhaps they will turn on you first.”

“You waste your time with threats and lies when I am here, willing to help you.”

“You will _never_ give me the help I want, you have made that clear enough,” William said, then cocked his head towards the Avengers, and continued, “but perhaps they might.”

“I will not allow them.”

William hummed. “With the right incentive all things are possible. Tell me, father, what do you think would happen if I ate your heart?”

“What?” Loki gasped.

William conjured his familiar long narrow knife into his hand and pressed the tip of it to his chin. “That really would be the end of you, wouldn't it? If I ate your heart.”

He moved the knife down to Loki’s cheek and trailed it along the healed skin, then down his jaw line to the open neck of his tunic. “Would I simply blink out of existence or would I conceive a magical child? Would it be more powerful than either of us?”

“I suspect it would be more insane than both of us,” Loki said.

“Tsk, tsk, father. So judgemental,” William said, then he raised his hands, grasping the knife tightly between them and snarled, “Why don't we find out?”

Loki closed his eyes as the knife began its descent towards his chest; he lowered his hand, allowed the magical shield to fall, and instead of the sharp point striking his skin he felt the weight lifted from his body.

Loki turned his head, opened his eyes, and saw the crumpled body of his son lying a few feet away from him. He sat up as Thor walked towards him, calling Mjolnir back to his hand, and placed the hammer on William's chest, then turned back to face his brother.

Loki raised a trembling hand and ran it through his hair, as Thor knelt next to him, and asked, “Why did you do that? He could have killed you.”

“I can't stay here,” Loki croaked, as he tried to climb to his feet, and fell onto his knees. “I can't stay. I have to go.”

Thor took Loki's hand, helping him up. “You must stay and help us, brother. Eventually William will listen to you.”

“That’s just it, Thor, he will _never_ listen, and I will get one of you killed before this day is through, I know it.”

“But, brother.”

Loki smiled, his eyes red and brimming with tears. He held a hand to Thor’s cheek, said, “Sorry,” and teleported away.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will be up tomorrow!


	10. Chapter 10

 

“Where did Loki go?” Steve asked when he arrived by Thor’s side.

“I do not know, he said he could not stay,” Thor replied, as the rest of the team joined them.

“That’s just _great_.” Clint said sarcastically.

Thor knelt by his nephew, removed his helmet, and turned his head so his neck was no longer in the grotesque, twisted position that had ended his life. He gently stroked his hair and then smiled when he opened his eyes with an audible gasp.

William looked around and asked, “Where is my father?”

“He has left.”

“He has abandoned me again,” William whispered as his eyes travelled the length of the hammer handle.

“No, he simply cannot bear to see you in so much pain,” Thor replied gently.

“Then he should end it for me like a good father would.”

“He will not allow it.”

“Perhaps you all would question his motives for keeping me alive if you knew what he planned for me,” William said, louder than before.

“Plans?” Clint asked.

“He kills you all and takes the nine realms for himself. My father rules with an iron fist, he kills all who oppose him, and I stand by his side!”

“You lie,” Thor shouted. “Loki would not do that now. He’s changed.”

William squinted up at him, and said, “Are you sure? Are you _really_ sure?”

“I would trust him with my life,” Thor said solemnly.

“And that will be your undoing,” William said with a grin.

“You may lay there as long as you wish and spout your untruths, little one, but I will never believe you.”

William smiled again. “I have all the time in the world. I can lay here until I die, my body rots, and the remnants are blown away. The hammer may be the only thing that can imprison me, but I assume you cannot afford to be without Mjolnir for that long. You will have to remove her at some point, and I will STILL be here!”

Thor thought for a moment. The boy was right. Even if he left him pinned in the street at some point another threat would rise and he would have to call Mjolnir to his hand and let him go. He was a mad, invincible child, who would not be reasoned with, and he knew Loki was right; the boy would never listen.

“What are you doing?” Clint shouted as Thor plucked the hammer from William’s chest.

As William teleported away, Thor turned to Clint. “What was I to do? Leave him trapped for eternity?”

“You could have kept him there till we found a way to contain him!” he shouted angrily.

“Do you not understand? The child will not be contained. He has lifetimes to wait for your civilisation to fall, for your prison walls to crumble, and one day he will be free to wreak devastation upon the realms until he gets what he wants. He must be dealt with here and now.”

Behind them the Hulk roared loudly in pain as William appeared behind him and slammed a knife into his thigh. Hulk swung round, flinging his arm out, and it connected with William, sending him flying into the construction site.

“Find him, quick,” Steve shouted as he ran towards the site, and the others followed him.

“I can’t see him,” Clint shouted as he ran between the metal uprights.

“Did he teleport away?” Natasha asked.

“He is here,” Thor said, looking down into a deep hole, and the others gathered by his side.

William laughed, coughing up mouthfuls of blood that ran down his cheeks as he lay on his back on top of the foundations, with a long metal pole piercing his chest.

“You think this is the end?” he laughed, his eyes beginning to close as blood ran across the concrete. “I will see you soon enough.”

The Avengers watched as the boy died, and then waited.

“Is he dead?” Clint asked.

“Looks that way,” Natasha replied.

“Stay alert,” Steve said. “He could wake up at any time.”

“He’s not coming back,” Tony said, raising his faceplate. “As long as that pole stays in his chest he stays dead, just like Loki couldn't heal when he still had the knife in his back.”

“It’s over?” Natasha asked.

“Not quite,” Clint said, as he raised his bow and fired an arrow. It hit a lever on a piece of heavy machinery, and fresh concrete began to flow into the hole, covering William’s body.

“No!” Thor cried.

“It’s the only way!” Clint shouted at him. “The second we move him he’s going to come back. Now he’ll be here, forever, and everything he said about killing us won’t happen. You should be thanking me!”

Clint turned to walk away, but before he could even register that someone stood in front him he heard a voice say “I told you I’d be back,” and felt a pain in his stomach.

William grinned as Clint collapsed to the ground with his hand wrapped around his middle, and laughed, “You’ll have to do better than that.”

“How the hell did you escape?” Steve said, raising his shield, as William began to stalk backwards, holding his blood smeared knife out defensively.

“I didn't. I'm still down there, in that hole, but concrete doesn't last forever,” William said with a wicked grin. “A thousand years from now, this building collapsed, the metal in my chest corroded until it was little more than dust and I woke once more.”

“Do you see?” Thor exclaimed. “No prison will hold him.”

“And no words will soothe me, so stop wasting your time on pretty speeches, uncle,” William said.

“What the hell do you want from us?” Natasha shouted, knelt by Clint’s side, holding her hand over the bleeding wound in his stomach.

“I want you to try harder!” William cried. “You are Earth’s mightiest heroes, you defeated some of the nine realms most powerful villains, and now I want you to defeat ME!”

“I hate to say it, kid, but I don’t know if we can,” Steve said quietly.

William growled, baring his teeth like a feral dog, and said, “Then your realm shall pay the price, and their deaths will be on your conscience.”

“Shit!” Tony shouted as William teleported away. “He’s going after people again.”

Natasha stood as everyone looked around. “He won’t go far. He wants us to see what he does.”

“Can anyone see him?” Steve asked.

An arrow sped past their heads, and Clint groaned, “I can,” as he flopped back down and dropped his bow to the floor.

They followed the path of the arrow to William, stood calmly on the roof of a neighbouring building, and watched as it hit him and exploded.

 

*

 

Tony was the first to arrive home and he stormed through the tower down to Loki’s room, kicking the door open so hard that it snapped down the middle, exploding a shower of splinters.

“What are you doing?” Loki asked as he lowered his arms. “Why are you still in your suit?”

“Get up,” Tony ground out.

“What?”

“You, get up, RIGHT NOW!” he shouted.

Loki climbed off the bed and moved over to Tony. “Has someth-”

Tony punched him in the face, putting the full power of the suit into the blow, and sending Loki flying back onto the bed. “That’s for blasting me with magic!”

Loki crawled to his knees, and held his cheek. “He is my child, it was an instinct.”

“You barely even know him!” Tony shouted. “You ever pull any shit like that again and I will END you, just like I should have when you attacked us the _first_ time.”

Loki’s mouth dropped open, he breathed out slowly as he rose from the bed, and asked, “After everything I’ve done, all the people I’ve helped, and you still throw that in my face?”

“When you start attacking _us_ you better believe I'm gonna throw that in your face again!” Tony shouted, jabbing a finger into Loki’s chest. “Clint is in surgery right now, and that is YOUR fault!”

Tony stormed out of the room, leaving Loki alone to wonder what had happened.

 

*

 

“Are you going to give me an explanation for what happened yesterday?” Fury asked, as he sat with Loki at the SHIELD conference room table.

Loki sat for a while, and then quietly asked, “What would you have me say?”

“You attacked Stark. Don’t you feel any remorse for that?”

Loki wanted to laugh. Did he feel remorse? He had attacked one of the few people in his life that he thought of as a real friend, and then left a battle, which lead to one of his team mates being injured. Such behaviour on Asgard would not be treated lightly, and Loki wondered what form his punishment for such cowardice would take.

“Of course I do,” Loki snapped.

“And would you like to explain your behaviour to me?”

“It was an instinctual act. I did not even think about doing it, it just… happened.”

“It just happened?” Fury asked, as he leant back in his chair. “You are aware that if it had ‘just happened’ to Barton or Romanoff they could have been seriously injured, maybe even killed?”

“I am,” Loki said remorsefully. “I’d like to request that you do not send me to face him again, if he reappears.”

“Oh, don’t you worry about that,” Fury said. “As of now you are off the team, _regardless_ of who they are fighting, until I know you can be trusted again. Do you understand what this means?”

“Yes,” Loki sighed.

“If you do _anything_ to endanger a member of this team again I will have you locked away in a place that will make a snake dripping venom in your face seem like a vacation.”

Loki scrubbed his hand wearily over his face and nodded.

“Go home,” Fury said, as he stood up. “Get some sleep, you look like total shit.”

Loki looked up at him for a second, and then said, “Can I see him?”

Fury raised an eyebrow. “You understand what you’re asking? The condition he’s in?”

“I am aware of what happened, yes.”

“Come on then.”

 

 

Fury lead Loki through the SHIELD building, down to the heavily guarded containment level where he himself had once spent some time as he waited to be taken back to Asgard after the battle in New York. He thought back, remembering how he had been locked away, seething with rage and hatred, and hoped William was lying. He never wanted to become that person again.

They entered a room where a large white box stood upon a table, and Fury asked, “Are you sure you want to do this?”

Loki nodded, and Fury removed the lid.

A large black container was inside the box, filled with liquid that gave off white vapour, and under the surface lay body parts. Two mangled legs, most of a forearm, a hand with only its thumb, and half a head.

“This was all we could find,” Fury said quietly. “Agents are continuing the search today, but its possible the rest of him might have been… vaporised.”

“You think he’s dead, don’t you?” Loki asked, as he looked up from the shattered body.

“This is liquid nitrogen. If we found the part of him that regenerates and it’s in here, he isn't coming back.”

“And what is to prevent me taking this box from you?” Loki asked.

“If you like breathing I highly suggest that you don’t,” Fury replied sternly. “Now that the Bifrost is repaired it wouldn't take much to banish your ass back to Asgard.”

Loki looked down at the box, and said, “It matters not. This flesh is merely an empty shell that he has cast off like a butterfly escaping a cocoon.”

“The fact that he hasn't time travelled back to this point and unleashed hell suggests to me that he’s dead, and this situation is over.”

Loki reached across the box, grabbed Fury’s wrist, and growled, “Listen well, for my words may save your realm. William is not dead, and now he plots anew. He waits, and he will strike when your guard is down. You must be prepared for that day or we will all meet our end.”

“Get your hand off me right now!” Fury barked.

Guards rushed into the room and grabbed Loki, trying to drag him away from Fury, but as they pulled him Loki lashed out with his free hand, grabbed the edge of the white box, and tipped it over, spilling its contents onto the floor.

“Stop him!” Fury shrieked, as Loki let out a blast of heat that melted the frozen flesh.

“Do you see?” Loki shouted. “If he was contained within this box he would have started to regenerate, but he isn’t. He is free, and mark my words, he is planning against us while we stand here and fret!”

“Get him out of here,” Fury ordered. “Put him in a cell.”

“You know who his other father is, don’t you?” Loki asked, as the guards tried to move him.

“Yes,” Fury answered. “Do you?”

“I have known since the first day I touched William’s magic with my own, but I could not say outright because then he would have known the manner of his death, and what use is a hero who is to afraid to fight in case this be the day he falls?”

“Which is the same reason why we decided not to tell him.”

Loki shifted on his feet, and then quietly said, “You know, Stark once told me that the people called him ‘the merchant of death’ so I have to ask myself, exactly which of his fathers does our child take after?”

“Oh, it’s you. It’s _definitely_ you,” Fury stated, then he said, “Put him in a cell to cool off and call his brother.”

Loki laughed as he allowed the guards to lead him away.

 

Thor thought it was amusing when he received the phone call asking him to come and collect his brother from the cells at SHIELD headquarters, but quickly realised it was no joke. Loki had attacked Fury, the second mortal he had hurt in two days, but Fury appeared to be in a forgiving mood, despite his badly bruised wrist.

“He will not be punished for his actions?” Thor asked.

“Do you think locking him up will achieve anything?” Fury asked.

“It has not in the past,” Thor replied.

“Look, I understand that this mission has been an incredibly personal one for him, and that makes it hard,” Fury said. “Loki has always been on the team by the skin of his teeth. His psych reports make for truly _terrifying_ reading, but while Stark is still on the team everything is relative.”

“What do you want me to do?” Thor asked.

“I need you to take him back to the tower and help him. As of now he is off the team, but if he can’t control his behaviour, then you need to take him back to Asgard and ensure that he stays there.”

Thor nodded solemnly and hoped that he could do something to aid his brother.

 

 

“Well, isn't this just like old times?” Loki asked, when Thor appeared outside his cell. “Me in here and you out there with a look of pity upon your _noble_ face. I am almost nostalgic for the dungeons of Asgard.”

“Loki, why are you acting this way?” Thor asked. “It is not like you.”

“Is it not?” Loki asked. “The mighty Thor has a _very_ short memory it seems.”

“This is not you, not _now_.”

“Perhaps it was my plan all along, to lull you into a false sense of security, bide my time until the right moment to strike,” Loki rambled as he walked up and down the sparse cell.

“Then why are you still here?” Thor bellowed. “If you truly wanted to escape there is nothing to stop you leaving. There are no wards against your magic, not a single person here could stop you, and you _know_ that. You are here, in this cell, because you choose it.”

Loki stopped walking, stared at Thor for a few seconds, and then turned his face to the wall.

“Speak to me, Loki. What is happening?”

Loki turned his head, glancing over his shoulder, and quietly said, “You should leave now. It's better for everyone if I stay here.”

“No. I will not leave you when you are behaving like this.”

“I'm going to kill you,” Loki whispered. “Father too.”

“You would never do that.”

“I’ve done it before,” Loki said quietly, raising his head slightly, and glancing at Thor out of the corner of his eye.

“That was different. YOU were different. You are not that person now.”

“Are you sure?”

Thor though back to what William had said when he was pinned beneath the hammer and suddenly it all made sense. “That child,” he growled. “He has been filling your head with poisonous lies.”

“What if it is the truth?” Loki asked.

“He attempted to tell me the same things yesterday, but I do not believe him.”

“You don’t?” Loki asked, and Thor shook his head. “And the others?”

“I cannot speak for them, brother, but even if they do, when they have time to think, once this is over, they will realise you are no longer capable of such things.”

“Perhaps,” Loki hummed. “He wants to drive me back to madness, Thor, and it seems he has had some success.”

“No, brother. This is not madness.”

“It isn't?” Loki asked. “I attacked Stark, a man I would call my friend. What else is it, if not madness?”

“A mistake, Loki,” Thor said. “A simple mistake. You acted without thinking. I know that you love your children and would do anything to protect them.”

Loki sighed, but did not move.

“Come home with me,” Thor said. “I promise I will keep you safe.”

“Home?” Loki asked. “I'm not sure I have one after this.”

“If you are not welcome there,” Thor said gently, “then I nor am I.”

Loki smiled sadly and nodded as Thor opened the unlocked cell door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yup, Tony is his dad, but it was never meant to be like a WHOA big reveal moment cos it was always pretty obvious!
> 
> Only one chapter tonight, but I will post more tomorrow!


	11. Chapter 11

_Black rain fell from the sky, staining the few buildings that still stood and the shattered wreckage of overturned cars that littered the street a dingy shade of grey._

_He walked, feet crunching brittle bones to dust beneath the soles of his boots, surveying the wrecked realm that was now his._

_The heroes had tried to defeat him and failed. Their bodies lay tattered and torn, piled together in a small heap, together in death as they were in life. Their weapons lay abandoned; the shield, the smashed faceplate of the man of iron, and the hammer he could not lift._

_He was aware of someone standing next to him, and they said, “You did it, father. For me.”_

_Loki began to laugh._

 

Loki woke with his heart pounding in his chest and wetness on his face, which he quickly wiped away, just in case he had disturbed his brother. He had already woken Thor once that night, thrashing in the bed, and he had lied about what caused him to panic so much.

Every night for a week he had slept in Thor’s room, half terrified that his son would appear to whisper lies of the future into his ears, even though everyone claimed that William was dead.

Loki knew it wasn't true, and when the bodies of criminals began to appear again, his fear began to grow.

He slipped out of the bed, but before he could even stand Thor asked, “Are you all right?”

“I am well,” Loki reassured him. “Go back to sleep.”

“You do not look well. Did you have another dream?”

“It matters not,” Loki replied, as he wandered towards the bathroom.

“It matters to me.”

Loki paused, turned back to face his brother, and finally admitted, “I'm scared.”

“You know I will not let him harm you.”

“Not _of_ him,” Loki said as he moved back to the bed and perched nervously on the end. “I'm scared of what he’s going to talk me into doing.”

“William talks of war and devastation, but these things do not have to come to pass. I trust you, brother. I know you will not harm me, or the others.”

Loki sighed. “I suspect you are the only one who feels that way.”

“How do you know that?” Thor asked. “You have kept yourself hidden away in this room for days.”

“I somehow doubt that I would be welcome after what I have done.”

In the half-light Thor could see Loki nervously picking at his fingers, he pulled back the sheets, and said, “Come back to bed, brother. It is senseless to worry about things that will never happen.”

Loki sighed. “How can you be so sure?”

“Because I know you. I know you are no longer capable of the things that he describes.”

“I wish I shared your faith,” Loki said quietly.

“Then I will have faith enough for both of us,” Thor replied, and then he patted the mattress. “Come back to bed. I'm getting cold.”

Loki’s mouth quirked up at one corner. He crawled up the bed and said, “All right, but don’t blame me if I wake you up again.”

“I will not complain,” Thor said cheerily as he pulled the covers back up over Loki.

 

 

When Loki woke the next morning he blearily watched as Thor moved round the room pulling on a T Shirt and taking out a pair of dirty boots.

“What are you doing?” he asked sleepily.

“Getting ready,” Thor replied.

“Are you going somewhere?”

“It is not good for you to spend all your time within these four walls. Come, we will go on a quest!”

“I don’t want to go on a quest. I want to stay here,” Loki replied petulantly.

“Get up and get dressed or I shall drag you out of bed and you can quest in your nightwear.”

Loki laughed and half-heartedly rolled his eyes. “Very well then, but no Bilgesnipe, fire demons, or other creatures. I’ve had more than enough excitement this week without you almost getting me killed.”

“Oh,” Thor said. “I was going to suggest we go for a walk in the park.”

Loki paused, then let out a little chuckle. “The park it is.”

 

 

They dressed in their dowdiest Midgardian clothes, hoping that no one would recognise them, which for Thor meant his hair tucked up under a cap, a hooded sweatshirt, and jeans. Thor teased Loki mercilessly when he appeared in a three-piece suit and a tie, and had eventually been talked into changing into black jeans and a leather jacket.

Loki teleported them to the park and they opted to stay away from the crowded areas and instead were content to wander among the trees, listening to the sounds of bird song and the children playing in the distance. It took Loki a while to relax, but when Thor threw a handful of fallen leaves in his face they started to chase each other, running wild through trees and cackling with laughter.

Later, when they were both breathing heavily, they wandered to a café and bought ice cream cones, and meandered through the trees again as they talked about when they were children.

“We should go to Asgard for a while,” Thor announced. “You've only been back once since the Bifrost was repaired. Mother will forget what you look like if you don’t pay her a visit soon.”

Loki let out a small laugh and contemplated Thor’s words as he finished the last bite of his ice cream cone. “Perhaps, when this is finished. It would be good to see mother again.”

As they cleared the trees and set out to walk across a grass area there was a flash of red light.

“My, _my_ , isn't this pleasant,” William said as he appeared before them dressed in his full battle armour. “A family outing and yet I was not invited.”

Loki felt a brief moment of panic, and curbed his sudden urge to hide behind Thor. Instead he stood up straight and said, “If you have come here to attempt to twist my thoughts you will be unsuccessful.”

William cocked an eyebrow up. “Twist your thoughts? Oh no, we are beyond that. I’ve come to kill you.”

“Why would you do that?” Thor asked, wrapping a protective arm around Loki’s waist.

“If I kill him I will never be born.”

“Have you thought this through?” Loki asked. “If you attack us the Avengers will come. Perhaps Stark will be killed and you will cause your own conception.”

“Stark is his father?” Thor gasped.

“Yes,” Loki replied, still keeping his eyes on William. “Stark falls in battle and I eat his heart. Perhaps it will be _this_ battle.”

“It’s a chance I am willing to take,” William said, “But none of that will matter if I kill you before you can eat his heart.”

Thor held out his hand, and even though Mjolnir was far away, he called for her.

 

 

Tony sat in the main room of Stark Tower, idly watching TV even though he knew he should be down in his lab working on his suit, but lately he found that he really wasn't in the mood for it.

He flicked through the channels, unable to settle on one for more than a minute, and realised that if Loki had been here he would have grabbed the remote out of his hand and smashed it against the wall in frustration.

He hadn't seen Loki for days, not since his little outburst at SHIELD headquarters that had landed him back in a cell for most of an afternoon, and he hated to admit it but he missed his surly presence around the tower.

When Loki was there he always had someone who was willing to join him in a night out, someone who was unpredictable, bordering on psychotic, and most of all Tony loved the fact that when Loki was around he was no longer the biggest ass hole in the room.

Thor had come to tell him earlier in the day that he and Loki were going for a walk in the park and asked if he wanted to join them, but Tony was nursing a mild hangover and had turned him down. Now he regretted it.

Tony regretted a lot lately. He didn't feel guilty for smacking Loki in the face, that was payback for blasting him, but he really wished he hadn't brought up the attack on New York, especially since it had turned out that Clint’s stab wound wasn't even serious and William had managed to miraculously miss every single vital organ and major blood vessel.

It was only two years ago, but it seemed much longer, and they had been through so much together since Thor had appeared at the Tower dragging Loki around by the arm as he apologised for his actions. None of them had trusted him at first, and it had taken time for them to realise that he really had changed his ways, although not entirely.

Loki was still... _Loki_ ; he lied all the time, he manipulated people to his own ends, and was prone to dark moods and occasional violence when he was frustrated. But he had also saved Tony’s life, and the lives of god knows how many civilians since he arrived back on Earth, and Tony couldn't help but let his mind drift back to the video tape of him sat in his room, alone, telling himself he wasn't good enough.

Tony asked himself the question he had been avoiding: did he really believe Loki would go back to the dark side and try to kill them all? He quickly realised that the answer was no, but there was a chance they might lose him anyway through mistrust and rejection, and Loki's own fragile mental state. Tony sighed as he realised exactly what was at stake here. Loki was his _friend_ , and if he didn't do something about this situation soon he might be too late.

He pulled out his phone to call Thor and ask if he could join them, but dropped it in shock when he heard the sound of breaking glass. He jumped out of his seat and went to the window.

“JARVIS, are Clint and Steve in the tower?”

“Agent Barton is in his room, and Captain Rogers is training, sir.”

“Can you patch me through to Steve?” he asked, as he popped his earpiece in and ran out onto the landing platform.

“Of course, sir.”

 _“Tony, what’s up?”_ Steve asked over the comm link.

“Tell everyone to suit up, right now, and head up to the hanger.”

_“Is something wrong?”_

“Well, Thor’s hammer just blasted out a window and is heading across the city. I’d say so, yeah,” Tony replied. “JARVIS, can you put me through to Clint?”

 _“What’s up?”_ Clint asked.

“Hey, are you well enough to fly the jet?”

“ _Sure, are we going somewhere?”_

“Yup, I’ll give you the location when I get there,” Tony said, as the Iron Man suit rose out from the floor and was applied to his body.

_“OK, heading up.”_

“JARVIS,” Tony said, as his faceplate slammed down and he blasted into the sky. “Follow that hammer.”

 

 

Thor waited, his hand outstretched, as William stalked from left to right in front of them.

“I couldn't help but notice the press have now given me a name,” the boy said. “'The Night Slayer'. It has a wonderful ring to it, don’t you think?”

“A villain name,” Loki replied. “It is nothing to be proud of.”

“There already is someone who goes by that name. I imagine he is terribly upset that I have usurped it.”

“Why are you wasting our time with idle threats if you intend to do nothing but strut like a Peacock?” Thor shouted.

William stopped, and tapped his foot impatiently. “ Isn't it obvious? I'm waiting for the others. Why would I waste my greatest triumph on an audience of just two?”

“They do not even know that you are here. What makes you think that they will arrive?”

William let out a snorting laugh and said, “Oh, I think they do.”

Finally the hammer landed in Thor’s grasp, he raised it to the sky, unleashing a mighty bolt of lightning, which smashed down to the hammer, surrounding Thor in forks of electricity, and transformed his clothes into his armour.

Glowing gold light surrounded Loki as his armour, cape and helmet appeared, and Tony slammed to the floor next to him, raising his hands, ready for battle.

“Iron Man, fashionably late to the party, as always” William said, raising his chin. “Today is the day you meet your doom.”

“Already met Doom, kid,” Tony quipped. “Can’t say I was that impressed.”

William chuckled. “If _only_ you knew the things that I know.”

“I quite like surprises so you can just keep that shit to yourself,” Tony replied, as the Quinjet touched down behind him.

Steve, Natasha, Clint and Bruce emerged from the jet and quickly moved across the grass.

“Good, good,” William said, clapping his hands together. “Now we are all present, shall we begin?”

“Whatever your game is, just get on with it,” Tony said.

The boy raised himself to his full height, conjured a knife into his hand, and proclaimed, “I am William Lokasson, the Night Slayer, and future ruler of Midgard and I declare war upon you and against this realm.”

“You’re a piss poor imitation of your father, kid,” Tony sighed. “At least he had an army.”

“ _Oh_ , I have an army,” William said, as a grin spread across his face.

He raised his hand and the sky above their heads began to swirl with colours, pulsing red, orange, yellow, green and blue.

The colours began to coalesce, forming a spout like a rainbow tornado; a flash of light cracked through the air as the spout touched down, and a hundred Frost Giants appeared on the field.

 


	12. Chapter 12

“No!” Loki cried when he saw the Frost Giants burst through the pulsing portal and form a tight battle formation on the other side of the field.

William laughed, and said, “Oh yes, daddy _dearest_ , you are right to be scared, since it is your blood they seek.”

“Loki has made amends with the Jotuns,” Thor said angrily, pushing Loki behind him. “He made reparations with their realm and Asgard gifted them the Casket in good faith as long as it was never used to attack.”

“Peace may have been made with the Frost Giants from the present,” William crowed. “To you your actions occurred long ago, but to them? Well, their king was murdered just yesterday and they seek _revenge_.”

“You brought them from the past?” Thor gasped.

“As long as I live this portal will remain open, they will have a way into this realm, and they will take it by force!” William said. “Perhaps now would be a good time to cede to my demands.”

The Frost Giants remained, standing still some 200 yards across the meadow, but as William raised his arm they began to advance slowly. Some held their arms out, allowing long spikes of ice to form as they walked, and with the weapons completed they began to run.

“Get back in the jet!” Loki said, desperately grabbing at Clint’s shoulder. “The touch of a Frost Giant can wound even an Aesir. It would surely be fatal for you and Natasha.”

“OK,” Clint said, and he grabbed Natasha arm and yelled, “Come on!”

“I would advise you to arm yourself,” Loki said to Steve, who nodded and ran after Clint.

“And you,” Loki said to Bruce, but before he could say more the transformation took over, his clothes tore, and the Hulk stood in front of him. “Well… I think you will be all right.”

“Don’t let them touch you!” Thor bellowed, twisting Mjolnir in his hand as the Frost Giants closed in.

“You better get airborne,” Loki said, flashing a look to Iron Man.

“What about you?” Tony asked.

“Their touch cannot hurt me. I'm one of _them_ ,” Loki said as the Jotuns finally closed the gap between them.

As Tony blasted into the sky he saw the front line of Frost Giants plough into the brothers who stood side by side. Thor raised Mjolnir, smashing the first wave and sending them flying back into those who came after, while Loki moved like a whirlwind, stabbing and slashing at anything that came within reach.

Tony started flying over their heads, firing his repulsors and blasting the giants apart, and Hulk roared with triumph as he rampaged through the Jotuns, breaking them with his bare hands.

Steve ran up the Quinjet ramp as Clint started the engines, grabbed a machine gun from the weapons hold, and shoved magazines of bullets into his belt. He ran back outside and fired off small pulses of ammunition at the Jotuns who approached, and used his shield to smash any who got too close to him.

The Quinjet was finally in the air, flying strafing runs across the heads of the giants, targeting them with their mini gun, while Iron Man concentrated on backing up the fighters on the ground.

Tony blasted a Giant that was behind Steve, reaching out to grab him with its dangerous hands, showering Steve in chunks of ice, and he looked up, giving Tony a nod of the head in thanks.

Hulk ploughed through the lines of the Giants, breaking them apart with punches, slaps and kicks. One of them got a hold on his arm and waited for his skin to turn black under its touch, but Hulk just grinned at the creature’s shock when it realised nothing happened. He punched the giant, cracking its skull open, and then ran through the crowd, smashing his fists wildly.

The numbers were thinning; the mob of giants that had poured onto the field was down to almost a quarter of its original total, and Tony allowed himself a moment of hope, and said, _“Guys, we can totally do this. We’re winning!”_

“Don’t get too excited,” Steve shouted as he threw his shield and cracked open the chest of a Jotun.

William stood by the portal and watched the final few Frost Giants fall.

“Is that the best you can do?” Tony shouted as he hovered in the air.

William grinned and then another wave of Jotuns poured from the portal, bringing with them giant grey dog like beasts with huge mouths full of jagged teeth.

“What the hell are those things?” Tony cried as one of the beasts leapt into the air, raking its clawed foot through air as it tried to catch him.

Several of the Jotuns knelt on he ground and placed their palms on the grass. A sheet of ice started to spread across the field, and huge pointed spikes grew up towards the sky, trapping the Avengers where they stood. Thor used Mjolnir to smash his way through the spikes, and then Steve let out a yelp of pain as a spike shot up from the ground and pierced his thigh.

Hulk let out a thunderous howl; he raised his hands and brought his palms together letting out a deafening sonic boom that shattered the ice, causing it to explode outwards in a glistening rain of shards.

The Jotuns were pouring onto the field still, several of them moved forward, leaping onto Hulk’s back until a pile of them managed to force him to one knee in an effort to remove them.

Steve was forced to retreat, limping on his badly injured leg, blood staining his suit in a bright red stream. He couldn't leave the fight, they were barely hanging on by the skin of their teeth as it was, and he hoped his wound would heal quickly.

A Jotun locked eyes with Steve, and a cruel grin spread across its face as it saw the blood slicking his thigh. Steve raised his gun, letting off a burst of gunfire, and then the shooting stopped as he ran out of bullets. He desperately scrambled at his belt, ripping out another cartridge, and as the Jotun bore down upon him Steve heard a whine of engines above his head.

“Jump in!” Natasha shouted from the open hatch of the Quinjet that hovered just over his head.

Steve crouched, letting the machine gun fall around his waist as it hung from the strap over his shoulder, and pushed up with his good leg, but missed by mere inches.

“We need to go lower!” Natasha shouted.

“All right!” Clint shouted back to her, dropping the craft a few feet.

Steve jumped, this time grabbing the ramp and hauling himself up as Natasha bent to help pull him inside.

There was a loud thump as two grey feet landed next to Steve, and Natasha found herself staring into the grinning face of a Frost Giant.

 

Loki fought quickly, striking like a cobra, jabbing his knives into anything that came near him, as Thor stood behind him, whirling Mjolnir like a tornado.

He stabbed right and left, creating clones which distracted the Giants, and then he heard Thor scream his name.

As Loki turned towards the sound he found himself face to face with a leering Jotun that grabbed his left hand and crushed his fingers mercilessly against the hilt of his knife.

The Jotun waited for Loki’s hand to turn black with frostbite, just as the Giant on Jotunheim had done so long ago, and Loki watched the familiar look of shock cross it’s face as his skin began to turn blue under it’s touch. This was different. It did not know what his true form was.

Loki had looked on with equal horror on Jotunheim as his glamour failed, but this time he knew what was happening. As the flush of blue skin bloomed on his neck, and moved across his face, turning his eyes blood red, he used the giants hesitation to his advantage, and smashed the point of the knife in his right hand into it’s eye socket.

The Giant fell to the ground, lifeless among the growing pile of corpses, leaking dark blood across the slick grass, and Loki's skin flushed pink.

There was a loud screeching sound from overhead as the engines of the Quinjet roared into overdrive, and Loki watched in horror as Frost Giants leapt into the air, throwing themselves into the open hatch at the back as Natasha and the clearly injured Steve desperately tried to force them out.

Loki felt like he was watching in slow motion as the Jet started to spiral downward, skittering across the grass, and finally came to a halt among the trees.

“We have to help them!” Tony shouted, flying towards the downed jet, and then he was knocked from the sky by a giant Jotun dog that caught him between its teeth.

At first Loki had believed that they could win this battle, but as another wave of Giants appeared through the portal he felt his hope begin to diminish. This could be the end, for the Avengers, for him, for Midgard.

Loki looked across the battlefield and caught sight of his son, still stood calmly by the portal, watching the fight with a wide grin on his face.

Finally William locked eyes with him, and Loki screamed, “You have to end this!”

William held his hand to his ear sarcastically and said, “Sorry, didn't quite catch that, what did you say?”

Loki teleported past the throng of Giants, stood before his son, and said, “End this, now!”

“You know how to end this,” William said, “and you know that you are the only one who can do it. Have I finally given you the incentive you need, or will you truly let them perish?”

Loki’s mouth went taut as he looked away and back across the battlefield. The hatch of the downed jet was still open by a foot and Giants were swarming around it, trying to pull it open, while others pounded on the glass canopy. He wasn't sure if the glass would break, but it was likely that the Giants would able to rip open the back hatch, and those trapped inside would stand no chance of survival.

Hulk and Thor were still fighting, desperately trying to fend off the Jotuns, and while the creatures were physically no match for them, they had sheer weight of numbers on their side. The Frost Giants would keep coming, and eventually their strength would fail.

They were going to lose.

Loki turned back, feeling his eyes prickle with tears, he took William by the shoulders and desperately pleaded, “There has to be another way.”

“There is not,” William said, then he nodded at something across the field and said “I have made my choice, and now you must hurry and make yours.”

Loki followed William’s gaze until he found Stark, still in the jaws of the snarling creature as he desperately fired his weapons into its face and mouth.

The beast stopped its loping run and threw Stark to the floor, then placed a huge paw on top of him, and Loki wondered how long the suit would last under the crushing weight and intense cold.

“Perhaps this is how it will end?” William asked. “If the beast freezes Stark there will be no heart for you to eat and I will blink out of existence.”

“I can’t allow that to happen,” Loki said. “I will not lose both of you.”

“Then do it!” William shouted.

Loki searched William’s face for any hint of remorse at his actions, but found nothing but madness in his eyes. Had he birthed a monster again, or was this just the product of the torture that Thanos had inflicted upon him for 300 years? If the torture never happened, if Thanos was dead long before William was even born it would never come to pass, and his child would never become the wicked boy who stood before him now. He knew what he had to do.

Loki let out a sudden cry of frustration and pushed William to the ground. “Give me your hands.”

William didn't flinch as Loki conjured a long thin knife and started to carve complicated runes into his left palm, each wound seeping blood, and then closing again. Loki moved onto his right palm, and as he carved the healing slowed, and finally ceased. As he finished the final rune, which stayed open, spilling blood across his palm, and William sighed in relief as the portal collapsed.

William smiled up at his father, and whispered, “Give me a clean death. Don't force me to do it myself.”

“I know that one day I will see you born, and I will watch you grow and I will love you more than I ever thought possible,” Loki promised as he held the tip of the knife to his son’s chest. “I will find a way to put this right. I will kill Thanos before he comes to take you. I swear that this will not be your end.”

William made no sound as the blade slipped beneath his ribs and pierced his heart. He smiled and raised his hand to Loki’s cheek, smearing it with blood and said, “Oh, father, if only that were possible.”

“I promise you, I’ll do it,” Loki said. “None of this will ever happen.”

“It already has,” William coughed. “Everything is history. You can’t change the future any more than you can change the past. Everything is inevitable.”

“But if I kill Thanos you will be safe,” Loki said as he pulled him into his arms. “He will not be able to take you if I kill him first.”

“You have already failed, and this will always be my end,” William whispered as his eyes began to drift shut.

“No, no, no, that’s not possible. No!” Loki shouted as he shook his son’s limp body.

Loki felt a hand on his shoulder, and heard a voice call his name. He looked up, his eyes wide with horror, and asked, “Thor, what have I done?”

Loki felt Thor kneel next to him, and was sure he spoke again, but he heard no sound. He wanted to scream, his mouth opened but nothing came out.

He heard the shouts of the Frost Giants as the swarmed over the Quinjet and finally tore the back hatch open, but even the sound of the rapid machine fire sounded distant and muted to his ears.

Nothing else mattered; the battle, the Jotuns, the shouts of his friends in the distance as they fought to save their own lives meant _nothing_ in comparison to the weight of his child’s dead body that rested in his arms.

He had killed the only child he had left and nothing could ever change that.

He leant forward, gripping his son’s body closely to him, threw his head back and screamed, “HEIMDALL!”

A rainbow of light plunged from the sky, plucked them from the ground and carried them back to Asgard, then spread out across the field, moving from Jotun to Jotun, until they had all vanished.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last two parts will be up tomorrow.


	13. Chapter 13

The Einherjar were waiting on the Bifrost, and as they slaughtered the Jotuns who had been brought back to Asgard Loki rocked on his knees, clutching the body of his son to his chest.

When the Jotuns were dead Frigga arrived and calmly crouched next to Loki, placing her arm across his shoulder and pulling his head into the crook of her neck as she murmured comforting words.

Thor stood as the bodies of the fallen Jotuns were carried away, wanting to say something, anything, to help his brother, but he could think of nothing.

 

That was three days ago now, and as they watched the burning boat that held William’s body drift further out to sea Thor looked at Loki and realised he had to yet to see his brother cry.

Loki had spent the time since they arrived back in Asgard with his mother, and Thor had barely seen him. He had come across them once in the palace gardens and had lingered behind a wall, watching as Frigga sat on the lush grass with Loki’s head on her lap, running her hand over his hair as she talked. He had turned and left them, not wanting to intrude when he still had nothing to say.

Thor stood by Odin and watched as Loki stood with his mother, silently observing the smoke of the blazing ship tower into the sky, and couldn't help but notice the way his fists were balled at his sides, shaking slightly from some unknown and unshared emotion.

Thor moved forward until he was standing beside his brother, and said, “We will put this right.”

“We will?” Loki asked, not taking his eyes off the boat. “And how exactly will we do that?”

“We will seek out Thanos and we will kill him before William is even born so he can never take him.”

Loki breathed sharply down his nose, and said, “Still courting war after all this time, brother?”

“If war will save him from this fate then yes, I will court it.”

Loki let out a soft laugh and said, “And to think I thought you had changed.”

“If we cannot defeat Thanos then we can at least petition Hela to release him?”

Loki turned sharply. “You think I have not tried that already?”

“What did she say?”

“She said he wasn't with her,” Loki said quietly.

“He has passed into the afterlife already?”

“No, she said he was _never_ there because he hasn't been born yet,” Loki replied. “Even after he is born he will never be there because he is not there _now_. I have lost him for eternity.”

“But surely there is som-”

“It is _over_ , Thor,” Loki snapped, shaking his head. “I killed him, and the last of my hope.”

“There is still hope, you cannot give up.”

“What hope is there that one day I will hold a child in my arms who will truly be mine?” Loki asked, finally turning to face his brother.

“William _will_ be yours,” Thor promised.

“Yes, he will. I will birth him and hold him, and love him, all the while knowing that one day I will kill him,” Loki said with a small laugh that sounded on the verge of hysteria.

Thor went to speak again, but was interrupted when Frigga gently placed a hand on Loki’s shoulder, and said, “I think you should rest now, my child.”

“Yes, mother,” Loki said, and he turned to walk away.

“But Lo-”

“ _Thor_ ,” Frigga said sharply. “Your brother needs to rest now. This can _wait_.”

Thor drew his lips together tightly, and nodded.

As Loki and Frigga made their way back towards the palace Thor stood by Odin once again and sighed loudly.

“Give him time,” Odin said. “He will speak with you when he is ready.”

Thor growled in frustration. “I should be out there now, hunting Thanos down and making him pay for this.”

“Not everything can be fixed with acts of aggression, Thor. A good king knows that not everything can be _fixed_. It would be wise for you to remember this.”

“Then it is just as well that I am not king,” Thor said, then he turned on his heels and marched away.

 

 

Thor decided to give Loki the time he needed, but after days of waiting his impatience began to grow. He missed his brother, he wanted to speak with him, and he realised that he could wait no longer.

Thor stood outside the doors of Loki’s room, raised his hand to knock, and then paused. He still had no idea what he was going to say. Should he offer words of comfort or should he offer his services in a plan against Thanos? Was it too soon to begin such plans or should he allow Loki to suggest their course of action?

The door suddenly opened and Frigga stood before him.

“What are you doing here?” she asked, as she came out of the room and closed the door quietly behind her. “Loki has requested no visitors at this time.”

“I wanted to know how he was.”

Frigga sighed and said, “Will you walk with me?”

“Of course, mother,” Thor said, as he took her arm and led her down the golden corridor. “Where are we going?”

“To the kitchens.”

“The kitchens? Could you not send a maid?”

“Loki needs time alone to compose his thoughts occasionally, and he has not eaten since he arrived back in Asgard. I want the cook to make him some soup, and I want to make sure it is exactly how he likes it.”

“He has not eaten?” Thor asked.

“Neither food nor drink have passed his lips since he came back, and he has barely spoken since the funeral.”

“Is there anything I can do to help?”

“He needs time to grieve,” Frigga said. “Losing a child is the most painful thing a parent will ever go through, but to end that child’s life yourself … I can’t even begin to imagine. To bring a child up _knowing_ that that he will die by your hand… It is almost unbearable to think about it.”

Thor nodded solemnly and said, “I understand why Loki grieves so.”

“There are many who think that Loki is cold and has a heart made of ice, but that is not true. Loki likes his secrets and keeps his heart hidden away lest it makes him look weak.”

“I will fix this,” Thor said suddenly. “I will kill Thanos and none of this will happen.”

Frigga shook her head. “The past cannot be changed. William _will_ be born and he will die by Loki’s hand.”

“But… I can change it… If I can kill Thanos it-”

“Thor,” Frigga said gently as she raised a hand to his cheek. “It has _already_ happened. No matter what you do, it cannot be undone.”

“Then I will prevent Stark’s death or stop Loki from eating his heart,” Thor suggested.

“Stark will die one day and in truth we do not know how he will meet his end. William may have been lying about it being in battle, and you cannot prevent the unknown,” Frigga said. “And your brother is impetuous, Thor. He has always done as he pleases. You may even be able to persuade him to agree not to eat the heart, but in the end he will do it, no matter what he says.”

“It truly cannot be prevented?” Thor asked.

“Even if could, should we?” Frigga said. “Is it better that William is never born, or better that Loki has that time with him before he is taken? It is not for us to decide. Loki must be allowed to choose for himself.”

“And Loki will choose for William to be born,” Thor stated.

“He will, but Loki has always been his own worst enemy,” Frigga said sadly.

“Do you think he would talk to me?” Thor asked. “I miss him so.”

“When he is ready I am certain that you will be the first person he asks for,” Frigga said, as she smiled and patted his arm tenderly.

 

For the next ten days Thor threw himself into palace business and helped Odin with his day-to-day tasks. In his free time he trained hard, sparring with guards until he was soaked with sweat and streaked with dirt, but none of it curbed the nagging thoughts that ran through his head.

On the eleventh day Heimdall sent for him and Thor was almost relieved when he was told that the Avengers had requested that he pass a message on to Thor that they were worried and would like to know what had happened.

Thor sent word to his mother that he was returning to Midgard and enquired if Loki would like to accompany him, knowing the answer in his heart before he even dispatched the messenger.

As he stood in the observatory, preparing to leave, but postponing it as long as possible just in case, Thor was surprised when Loki appeared beside him.

“Brother, it is good to see you,” Thor said with a smile of relief. “Have you decided to come to Midgard?”

Loki shook his head and looked down at his feet. “No, but I thought I should wish you farewell, and ask that you tell everyone that I am well.”

Thor scrutinized Loki for a moment, taking in the dark smudges under his red eyes, and his uncombed hair. Quietly he asked, “Are you well, brother?”

Loki smiled sadly, his eyes unnaturally bright, and shook his head, then let out a soft laugh. “No, but they need not know that.”

Thor grabbed Loki’s arms, and pleaded, “Come back with me. Come back to Midgard. The change will do you good, and I am sure-”

Loki struggled out of his hold. “No, Thor! I will not return there.”

“I'm sure Stark and the others have missed-”

“And that’s exactly _why_ I can’t go back, Thor,” Loki hissed. “You want me to return there, and one day I will, I have no choice because I must return to watch Stark DIE! Forgive me if I want put that moment off for a while.”

“William might have been lying about how Stark died,” Thor said. “You have no idea which of his word were truth.”

“Regardless of how he dies, one day he will, and I will be there to witness it,” Loki shrieked. He turned and allowed his head to fall forward as he closed his eyes, then spoke again, quietly. “I have never found it very easy to make friends, Thor, you know that. I know the others merely tolerate my presence, but I think Stark actually _enjoys_ my company, and I his. I can’t go back and watch him die, not yet.”

“We have always known the lives of the Mortals are fleeting. It is just the way of things.”

“I can take no more _hurt_ ,” Loki said than he raised a shaking hand and curled it into a fist in front of his face, “And I feel so… _unspeakably angry_ that I need to do something before I can even think of setting foot on Midgard. Allow me this time, brother. I am not ready yet.”

Thor nodded slowly. “I will pass on your good wishes.”

“Thank you,” Loki replied, and Thor watched as he turned and walked away.

 

*

 

After the battle in Central Park, when Thor and Loki had vanished up into the sky along with the giant _thing_ that had pinned him to the ground, Tony had been content to potter around the tower, tinkering with his suit and other long forgotten tech projects that he had never got round to finishing. As days turned into weeks and they heard nothing from Asgard, Tony had begun to fret, and spent several nights getting spectacularly wasted on any alcohol he could lay his hands on.

He sat cross-legged on the floor of his workshop, dressed in a T Shirt and his boxers, and passed the empty bottle of Jack Daniels between his hands. Perhaps something had happened and that was why they hadn't come back. William might have woken up and slaughtered half of Asgard, or the Frost Giants might have over run the realm.

It was the not knowing that was killing him, and as he slumped back onto the floor, letting the bottle fall out of his hand and roll under the bench, he thought about something Thor had told him in the past.

Heimdall, the big guy who stood on the end of the Bifrost, could see everything. It was worth a try.

“Hel _loooo_ ,” Tony called.

“Yes, sir?” JARVIS replied, making Tony jump.

“Not _you_ ,” Tony slurred. “I was talking to the big guy in the sky.”

“Very well, sir, carry on.”

“Hey, Heimdall, I dunno if you can see me or anything, but I’d really like to know what’s going on with Thor and Loki, and everything. Can you give me a sign that they’re still alive? Anything? Anything at all?”

Tony waited, feeling his eyes drift closed, and mumbled, “Ah well, it was worth a shot.”

 

Tony wasn't sure how long he had been asleep on the floor of his workshop when he was woken by a large hand gently shake his shoulder.

He opened his eyes, saw Thor knelt next to him, said, “Thanks, Heimdall,” and passed out again.

 

*

 

After assuring everyone that all was well, and that Loki just needed some time, life returned to as normal as it could with one of their number missing.

They ate occasional meals together, sparred in the training rooms, and Steve dragged Thor out for a ride on his motorbike.

During the second week they fought a small skirmish with a handful of Doom bots and defeated them easily, and while Thor was glad to be back in action his heart was not in the battle.

A week later Thor announced that he was leaving and no one was really surprised.

 

 

“Heimdall,” Thor said, as he landed in the observatory. “How fares my brother? Have you news?”

“Prince Loki is no longer in Asgard,” the watcher replied impassively as he gazed into the distance.

“ _What_? Did he leave? Was he taken?” Thor asked quickly, fighting the urge to grab Heimdall by the shoulders and shake him.

“Loki left of his own volition.”

“Why did no one send for me?”

“Loki left orders that he was not to be followed, and that your journey to Midgard should not be disturbed.”

“Heimdall,” Thor asked. “Do you see him? Is he well?”

“Once again the prince has hidden himself from my sight, and he has not done that in many years, but I can see the corpses he leaves in his wake.”

“Loki kills?”

“He does. He has left a river of blood behind him.”

“He has attacked Thanos? You must send me after him at once. I cannot allow him to face the titan alone,” Thor said, desperately.

“No, he has not. Thanos resides far from these realms. I see the people sing the praises of the god who saves them from those who would harm them.”

“Do you know where Loki is?” Thor asked. “I must speak with him at once.”

“I cannot see him, nor can I cannot predict where he will go next. I cannot send you to him.”

Thor closed his eyes, and said, “Brother, what are you doing?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Final part will be up in about 5 minutes.


	14. Chapter 14

Nick Fury wasn't having a particularly good day.

He sat at his desk looking at a list of potential new recruits for the Avengers, shuffling papers, and hoping someone would be suitable to add to his currently depleted team.

Loki was gone and there was no date set for his return, Thor had returned to Asgard without saying whether he would be back, Stark had suddenly announced that he was leaving the city and no one should bother calling him unless the world was about to be invaded by creatures from Mars, and even Banner was talking about taking time out to travel to some plague ridden village in the middle of nowhere.

He’d sent Coulson out to make contact with several who seemed to fit the profile, but every report he received back indicated that the potential new recruits were even more dysfunctional that his present team members. He really hadn't considered the possibility that he could do worse than a pair of Norse gods, one of whom had spectacular mental issues, a man who turned into a giant green monster when he got angry, and... Tony Stark, but apparently he could.

He ran his hand over his head and sighed as he threw another manila folder down onto the growing rejection pile.

The air in room rippled, and Fury looked up as green light began to glow at the centre of the disturbance. There was a bright flash and Loki appeared in the room.

Fury eyed him for a second, taking in the slightly tattered state of his cape, the dirt that streaked his face, and the slightly wild look in his eyes.

“The wanderer returns,” Fury said, as he leant back in his chair, attempting to appear relaxed when he felt anything but.

“I want them,” Loki growled, his chest heaving. “I know you have them here. I can sense them.”

“And what exactly do you want?”

“The tesseract and the sceptre. Give them to me, now.”

“I feel like we've been in this situation before,” Fury said as he stood up and walked round the desk. “So you tell me, when you show up here looking like you've gone all super villain again, just why I should hand over two weapons of enormous power to you?”

“You will give them to me now or I shall tear this building apart looking for them.”

“I don’t respond well to threats,” Fury stated calmly.

“This is no idle threat, this is a promise” Loki hissed.

“While you continue to behave in this manner you will receive nothing from me.”

Loki took another step closer to Fury. “Give them to me or I will let Thanos continue with his plan to destroy Midgard.”

Fury paused, and then said, “He’s coming here?”

“Yes.”

Fury moved back around his desk, sat down, and rested his chin on his hands. “Tell me what you know, and maybe, just _maybe_ , I will consider your request.”

Loki ground his teeth together and said, “We have not the time for explanations.”

“You will tell me how you got this information or you will get _nothing_ from me.”

Loki closed his eyes and dropped his chin to his chest, trying to contain the bubbling rage that covered the sea of grief that burnt inside him. After a few deep breaths to steady himself he opened his eyes and began.

“After William’s death I needed some time alone. I felt so terribly angry that I knew returning to Midgard would not be a good idea, and I wasn't sure I would even be welcomed if I did return, so instead I set out to travel the realms, and I could hear the voices of the people crying out for help.”

“You went to help people?” Fury asked.

“I am a god, Fury, or have you forgotten that?” Loki asked, as he tilted his head questioningly. “When people are in need they call for us, and sometimes we answer.”

“They asked for help against Thanos?”

“Not at first. Sometimes it was giants destroying villages or trolls stealing crops,” Loki continued. “I followed the voices, travelling further than I ever thought possible, and I heard stories in the outer reaches. Tales of small disturbances where single creatures emerged.”

“Creatures? What kind of creatures?”

“The Chitauri.”

“You’re sure it’s them?”

Loki moved his hands through the air, on top of each other and around, and something appeared in his hand. He threw it towards him, and said, “Quite sure.”

Fury jumped back as the severed head of a Chitauri soldier landed on his desk. He glared up at Loki, and said, “Let’s go get the tesseract.”

 

 

“What makes you think he is coming here?” Fury asked as he walked down the corridor with Loki at his side.

“The portals are moving through the realms, getting closer as he perfects his device. I am not sure how he is powering it, but currently it appears he can only transport one being at a time.”

“How do you know that?”

Loki raised an eyebrow. “Because if he could transport more than one Chitauri he would send his entire army. He would not dally, he would come directly here with more forces, and the fact that he has not, proves that he _cannot_.”

“And you're sure he's coming to Earth?”

“The scene of his greatest defeat?” Loki asked. “Thanos will not stand for it. Believe me, he comes for his revenge.”

Fury stopped outside the entrance of the science division, and asked, “You can stop him?”

“I cannot kill Thanos. I am not powerful enough, no one is,” Loki replied. “We know that one day he will perfect his device, and he will use it against Asgard to take my son. I cannot stop that, but I can delay it.”

“Have you considered the idea that _this_ might be what makes him take your son?”

“I have given Thanos enough reason to take him already. He does not stand for failure, and one day he will make me pay for my defeat on Midgard.”

Fury opened the door, allowing Loki to enter first, and walked to the bench where a scientist waited.

“Is it ready?” Fury asked.

“The sceptre’s been brought down from the archive,” the man said, as he keyed a code into a metal case.

Fury felt some trepidation when he saw Loki’s eyes light up at the sight of the sceptre. As Loki picked it up and a grin slowly spread across his face Fury’s heart began to pound. “That brings back… memories.”

“Where is the tesseract?” Loki asked, finally dragging his eyes away from the sharp blade.

“They’re disconnecting it now,” the scientist said.

“Are you sure you can do this?” Fury asked seriously. “Wouldn't it be better to regroup and send all the Avengers after him?”

“Only I have the skills to tap the power of the Tesseract,” Loki replied.

“But maybe with a whole army, rather than just one man, we can kill him?”

“Thanos will not be killed. No matter what we do he will still be alive to take William.”

“Don’t you even want to try? This could save your son.”

“He is already dead. It cannot be changed, no matter what we do, our plans will always be thwarted.” Loki said, lowly. “Stark will die, my son will be born, and he _WILL_ be taken.”

The door opened and a man entered carrying a silver case, which he placed on the bench.

“Open the case,” Loki snapped.

“I’ll give you the key code,” the scientist said. “You need the case to transpo-”

“I need no case, open it now!”

The man quickly turned the case towards himself and tapped in the code. He opened it, and revealed the blue glow of the cube within.

Loki smiled, grabbed the tesseract out of the box, and vanished in a flash of light.

Fury sighed, and the scientist asked, “Problem, sir?”

“No. Just not looking forward to explaining this one to the council.”

“You trust him not to turn on us, now he has the tesseract?”

“He killed his own son to save us,” Fury said. “We owe him the chance to prove himself.”

The scientists looked sceptical, and Fury added, “Sometimes you have to have a little faith in people.”

 

*

 

When Thor had gone back to Asgard Tony had hung around the tower for a while longer, and then after a few weeks he realised he couldn't stand just waiting. He called Pepper and talked it over, she told him he needed a holiday, and she was right, he hadn't spent any time away from the tower in far too long.

The next morning, before anyone else was even out of bed, Tony gave instructions to Jarvis to inform everyone that he had gone to Malibu, that he was fine, and please don’t call unless the world was ending.

As he flew away from the tower Tony was hit by the sudden feeling of loss, like he was leaving something behind; a time, a place, his team… it felt like it was all ending and everything was falling apart.

 

He spent his first few days in Malibu so drunk that he ended up falling asleep outside in the early hours of the morning and only woke up when the sun was high in the sky. He spent the second few days applying expensive cream to his skin to heal the obvious sunburn, and tinkering with a few long abandoned projects in his workshop.

He called Rhodey at the weekend to apologise for being a shitty friend who didn't call enough, and they hung out some evenings, talking about work and comparing suit stories.

Tony was starting to feel almost like his old self when he received a cryptic call from Fury, asking if he had seen anything suspicious or if he had any unusual visitors, and Tony yelled at him to get off the line.

One morning Tony woke with an idea for a new weapon for his suit, and as he worked on it feverishly the days and nights started to blur into one long passage of time that was punctuated only by the deliveries of food that Jarvis ordered without being told, and a few snatched hours in bed regardless of the time of day. He was on a roll, and he didn't want to stop, because stopping meant thinking, and he really didn't want to do that.

 

It was 2am when Tony decided to take a break. He’d been working for 6 hours, and it was too early to sleep, but his eyes hurt, and he wanted to feel the cool breeze on his skin.

He poured himself a drink, not alcoholic, he wanted to keep a clear head while he was working on the important circuitry, and went outside.

It was dark, and as he sipped from his glass he listened to the soothing sound of the ocean waves as they hit the cliff below, and felt the tension ebb out of his body.

Something smashed into his chest, knocking the glass from his hand, and forcing him onto his back. He felt cold, clammy skin on his wrists as they were held down, and then the light of the arc reactor illuminated the face of a Chitauri soldier.

“Shit!” Tony cried as he started to struggle, trying to buck the creatures weight off him and pull his wrists free.

The Chitauri let out an abrupt wail, and Tony watched as the tip of a blade exited through its eye socket, stopping just millimetres from Tony’s cheek, dripping black blood onto his skin.

The body of the soldier was lifted by the blade sticking through its skull, it was tossed to the side, and Tony saw Loki stood before him, the blood smeared sceptre in one hand, fixing him with a stare more predatorial than the one the Chitauri had given him.

Tony swallowed and asked, “You aren't going to kill me, are you?” Loki rolled his eyes in response to the question, and Tony suddenly felt better when he realised this was still the same petulant, sulky Loki that he missed so much, even though he did look like he’d turned evil again.

“What are you doing here?” Tony asked as he climbed to his feet. “I thought you were in Asgard.”

“I have not been in Asgard for quite some time,” Loki replied.

Tony looked down at the sceptre. “I assume dad gave you permission to take that, and you’re the reason for his weird phone call a couple of weeks ago asking about visitors or if I’d seen anything strange?”

“He allowed me use of them, yes,” Loki replied, taking a wavering step to the side, his knees almost buckling underneath him.

“Hey, whoa,” Tony said, as he grabbed Loki’s arm. “I think we better get you inside.”

“I am well,” Loki said, as he leaned onto Tony’s shoulder.

“Inside, now, and I'm not taking no for an answer.”

Loki nodded slowly, and allowed Tony to lead him back inside the mansion.

“Is this blood?” Tony asked as they moved into the house and he saw Loki in the light for the first time. His armour was streaked with black and red, his cape hung in scorched tatters, and a stream of crusty red dust clung to the left side of his neck.

“Most of it is not mine,” Loki replied.

When they reached the kitchen Tony pulled out a chair.

“I will stand,” Loki said, eyeing the chair.

“No, you will sit down before you fall down, because you are way heavier than you look and I am not hauling your dirty ass onto one of my nice, clean couches if you pass out.”

Loki sighed, and slumped down onto the chair, then as Tony’s hands moved to his helmet he asked, “What are you doing?”

“This has to come off,” Tony said, as he took the helmet from Loki’s head and placed it on the counter top. He winced when he saw how the hair was stuck to his head with caked blood that was still flowing sluggishly from the open wound on his scalp.

Tony grabbed his first aid box from a cupboard, and held a clean piece of gauze to the wound. "Why hasn't this healed?”

“It is superficial. Healing such a trifling injury is not a good use of my time nor energy.”

“Superficial?” Tony asked as he took the cloth away, then grimaced. “I can see your skull!”

“It is not important.”

“Will you heal it? Consider it my Christmas present this year.”

Loki sighed. “Very well.”

Tony inspected the wound again and was satisfied it was closed. “OK, are you gonna tell me what’s going on now? Where the hell did that Chitauri come from?”

“It was sent by Thanos.”

“You went after Thanos? On your own?” Tony barked.

“I did.”

“You could have been killed!”

“No, I could not,” Loki replied.

“Did you kill him?”

“That was never my aim. I went to destroy the portal device he was creating, but in order to locate it I had to wait until he used it again. Once I destroyed the device I followed the creature. You know the rest.”

Tony sighed as he threw the wad of bloody gauze in the bin and said, “OK, you jump in the shower. I’ll sort you out some clothes and order some food, and then it’s off to bed with you.”

“I cannot stay,” Loki said sharply. “He may have sent more of his army. I must track them and kill them.”

“You need to rest. You’re in no condition to fight. If you go back out there like this you're going to die. At the very least you need to eat something.”

“I have eaten.”

“And what exactly have you eaten because I somehow doubt they do Chinese takeout where you've been.”

“There was a plentiful supply of carrion.”

“Carrion?” Tony asked, and then he realised what he meant. “Oh you didn't? The _Chitauri_? You ate the Chitauri?”

“Well, not their hearts,” Loki replied quietly with a weak grin pulling at his lips, and Tony couldn't help but laugh.

 

 

Tony rang his favourite pizza shop and offered them a thousand dollars to open up at 3am and deliver him 6 pizzas, an offer which the owner was only too happy to accept.

When the food was delivered they ate in companionable silence for a while, until Tony brought up the fact that Loki had smelled like a Bilgesnipe when he first appeared, which prompted a mild hissy fit that Tony was almost certain was thrown simply for Loki’s own entertainment.

At 4am Tony announced that it was time for Loki to go to bed, after he watched his eyes drift shut for the second time, with his mouth half full of pizza.

Tony showed him to the guest bedroom, and as he was leaving Loki called his name, and asked, “Will you stay with me for a while?”

He turned back and looked at the god, stood in his bare feet in an impersonal cavernous white bedroom, wearing just an AC/DC T Shirt that was both too big, and too short for him, and a pair of cotton pyjama bottoms Tony had found at the back of his wardrobe. For someone who arrived looking like a vision of death not two hours ago, Loki looked more like a scared and vulnerable child now.

“Sure,” Tony replied, and he lay on top of the sheet on one side of the bed, while Loki climbed under it on the other.

They lay for a while, bathed in the relaxing glow of the arc reactor, and Loki let his tired mind wander. He thought of all the death he had witnessed, and would witness in the future, and his chest constricted tightly as he fought to hold back his emotions.

Stark was going to die at some point and he would be by his side when it happened. He wondered what it would be like and imagined the quiet moment after a vicious battle, finding Stark crumpled among the debris of the city. He imagined kneeling by his side with a knife in his shaking hand, the other Avengers looking on in silence as he carved open his friend's chest and ate his heart.

Perhaps they would try to stop him, to save him from the anguish that would follow, but he would fight them to the last and fulfil the prophecy of William's words. He would eat Stark’s heart and condemn himself to a lifetime of torment for he knew it was nothing less than he deserved.

 

Tony heard an unmistakable hitch in Loki’s breathing and asked, “You OK?”

“No,” Loki replied, his voice cracking with emotion even on a single word, as a tear rolled down the side of his face and ran into his hair.

Tony had seen Loki cry before, but usually it happened when he was in pain, the day he discovered that My Chemical Romance had split up, or in the middle of a screaming fight with Thor when tears would get him what he wanted.

More often than not it was when he’d drank enough to send him into his ‘emo drunk phase’ which always started with cries of “No one loves me” and ended up with him singing while tottering round the room with a half empty vodka bottle in his hand.

Tony had never seen Loki cry real tears of emotion.

As he watched another tear slide down Loki’s face in the half-light of the arc reactor Tony wasn't exactly sure what to do. Was he supposed to hug him like Pepper undoubtedly would? That would probably end with him sporting a black eye. Should he offer comforting words of advice like Bruce would probably do? That also seemed like black eye territory.

Awkwardly Tony reached out a hand and patted Loki on the shoulder. “It’ll be OK.”

Loki cast a glance at the stilted hand that rested on his shoulder and let out a small chuckle, then murmured, “You have a good heart, Tony Stark. Never let anyone tell you differently.”

Tony was even more confused now. He was used to accepting compliments from top fashion magazines and super models, but this was _Loki_. Loki called him annoying; Loki called him a dullard, an oaf, and a pinch faced troll. Loki ridiculed his height and his facial hair, and never once had Tony been upset about it, because that was just how Loki was.

Actually, there was that one time when Loki had insulted JARVIS and Tony had thrown a book at his head, but he tried not to think about that too often as the pictures of him fighting Doom in a baby pink Iron Man suit which Loki had magically repainted in revenge half way through the battle would probably haunt him till the day he died.

He decided to handle it the way he handle pretty much everything Loki said to him.

“Getting a bit mushy there,” Tony quipped. “You aren't going to kiss me, are you?”

“Only in your dreams,” Loki laughed.

“Yeah, yeah,” Tony said playfully. “You know you love me.”

“I do not!” Loki exclaimed. “If anyone loves anyone it is you. There have been times when I have seen you out of the corner of my eye and wondered why a Dwarf is in the tower.”

Tony laughed, and then asked, “You’re gonna stay, right?”

“I don’t know,” Loki replied honestly. “I doubt I would be welcome after the things I have done recently.”

“Steve and Bruce will be fine with it.”

“Agent Barton-”

“Will get over it,” Tony interrupted.

“I would not be so sure,” Loki replied.

“Meh, my tower, my rules,” Tony said. “If he doesn't like it he can take a hike.”

Loki let out a snorting laugh.

“I'm sorry for what I said to you, you know,” Tony said quietly. “I was angry and upset, but that isn't an excuse. I shouldn't have brought New York up.”

“I am sure I deserved it,” Loki mumbled.

“No, no you didn't. Not that, and I'm sorry,” Tony said. “I'm not sorry for smacking you in the face though, you totally deserved that.”

Loki laughed again and said, “That I did.”

“So you’ll stay?”

Loki pondered for a moment, and then made his choice. The future may be inevitable, but he would stay on Midgard and enjoy the time he had left with his friend, no matter how short it was.

“Yes,” he replied. “I will stay.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone who has commented on this fic. I appreciated every single one of them, even if I haven't replied. (Must confess that posting this fic made terribly miserable, which is half the reason I haven't been replying haha!)
> 
>  
> 
> The title came from [As I Walked Out One Evening by WH Auden](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UtbYtb50z2M) BTW. I have Tom Hiddleston reading this on my iPod and it just seemed to right.


End file.
